Promises
by 123lovestory
Summary: My name is Melanie Stryder. I love Jared Howe more than anything, and I would do anything to find him after he went missing on a raid. Rated T for romance and action! Mostly Jelanie, but there is some O'Wanda
1. Promises

**A/N: So this is my first fanfiction ever and it's probably going to have some flaws, but I had a ton of fun writing it and I hope you enjoy reading it! Written from Melanie's POV, but I may change it to Jared's point of view sometimes. Lots of romance, and there will be lots of adventure/action when Melanie tries to find Jared. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to The Host, by Stephanie Meyers.**

I awoke to Jared stroking circles on my back. My head was resting under his chin and his arm was around me. He looked so peaceful, just like he always should. I hummed and snuggled closer to his warm body. "Hey sleepy," he said in a dopey voice that only sleepiness provokes from him. I grinned up at him.

"What's so funny?" he asked me with a little chuckle.

"Nothing, it's just that after all we've been through, I still get to wake up to your beautiful face, and nothing could ever be so amazing," I replied.

"That's funny, because I was just thinking how lucky I am to have you. I love you." He replied with a bashful grin.

Before I could reply, there was a banging on the door.

"Come on lazy, we've got food to steal!" Kyle yelled at Jared through the closed door.

"I hate you!" I yelled back at him. Great. Now, instead of saying, "I love you" to the most perfect man on earth, I had to say, "I hate you" to an intruder of a perfect moment.

I could hear Kyle mumbling something as he walked towards the next door. Whatever. He ruined a wonderful moment, and he could be as grumpy as he wanted about my response.

Jared groaned as he stood up. "Duty calls" he whispered to me as he kissed my cheek. I didn't want him to go, I wanted him to climb back into bed with me, where we would be safe forever in the warmth of each other. Alas, I too climbed out of bed to go see Jared and the other men off.

The light of the garden was always a bit blinding in the morning, especially after being in the dark cave hallways. Everyone was bidding the men going on the raid goodbye. Jamie hugged Jared goodbye first. "You have to be the man of the cave while I'm gone." Jared told Jamie. I loved the brotherly bond they shared, Jamie looked up to Jared so much. "I will be, I promise!" Jared replied in a chipper voice. How was he always so energetic in the morning? "Promise you'll come back?" Jamie then said in a quieter voice. "Promise." Jared replied and gave Jamie one last hug.

He then turned to me and took me into his muscular arms. "Two weeks. That's not so bad is it?" He spoke into my neck. "No, that's not too bad." I replied. I was lying.

We held each other for another moment before I spoke again. "I love you. I love you so much, don't you dare leave me." Jared responded immediately, "Never. Promise you'll be strong while I'm gone?" Jared knew me all too well. After being separated, we had formed a bond so strong, that we were almost always together. I didn't want to promise him that I would be strong, with the ever-looming fear of his safety hanging over my head. But, I did, "Promise." So many promises in the midst of goodbyes.

"Come on lovebirds! The sooner we go the sooner we get back," Kyle yelled at us, once again ruining everything. I swear if this boy keeps it up, he won't be coming back at all. Jared kissed me one more time, before looking into my eyes and simply saying, "I love you." As he walked towards the exit I yelled my last words of the day to him. "I'll be counting the days!" He turned and smiled at me before disappearing around the corner

* * *

Four Weeks Later

"Mel, calm down! It's probably nothing, they probably had issues with the truck, or something little like that" Wanda tried to calm me down, but I couldn't stop shaking.

I had been on edge all day, and the setting sun was only making things worse.

"He's a two weeks late! _Two weeks!_ Has Jared ever been late from a raid before?" I hissed back at her.

I felt bad for being harsh, but I couldn't help it. So many things could have happened to Jared in 14 extra days he's been gone. He could be lost in the desert, or stranded in an alien city, or worse of all, taken by the body snatchers. No! I couldn't allow myself to wander to such scary thoughts. I needed to stay positive, for myself, and for Jamie.

"Melanie. You need to stop making it worse. I know what you're thinking; we used to share your body. You think they took him, but there are a thousand other possibilities."

I gave Wanda a small glare and turned back to my food. I wasn't hungry, but even if I was, I think my shaking hand would betray me before any food reached my mouth.

Wanda let out an exasperated sigh. "Look, Jared is smart. Smarter than most, or he wouldn't have lasted this long. You need to trust that he is okay. He's got something to fight for, he's got you."

"I had something too! I had him and Jamie, but that didn't do anything for me! I was stolen from him, and I can't help but think that we are going to be separated once more! Only…only this time….we won't find each other again!" My last words were barely audible. I could feel a lump rising in my throat as I stood up and ran out of the room.

I was only halfway to our before the tears came. I could feel them rolling across my cheeks, leaving a cool path on my hot face. I took the longest way to the room Jared and I shared, so that I wouldn't have to go through the garden. I used my hands to guide me through the dark hallways, to the only place where I could truly let myself go.

As I stumbled blindly into my bedroom, I was struck with Jared's scent. I flung myself onto the bed we shared and inhaled it from the sheets. His smell was so distinct that I almost felt that he was there next to me. Only he wasn't. And he hadn't been for four whole weeks. This only made me cry more.

As I laid there with my head pressed into a pillow, I heard a timid voice calling my name. "Melanie? Mel?" No, of all people, why did it have to be Jamie who saw me this way? I needed to be strong for him. If I couldn't be strong, how could he?

I held my breath as Jamie quietly entered my room. I was expecting him to try to comfort me, but he didn't speak at all. He only come and lied next to me, tears rolling silently down his own face. We held each other, my chin pressed into his soft brown curls.

"Jamie, Jamie, Jamie…" I murmured as I stroked his hair.

Moments ago, I didn't think I could last another moment without Jared. But with Jamie, I knew that we were going to make it through this together. Jamie had promised Jared that he would be the man while Jared was gone, and Jamie was holding strong to his promise.

"Mel…._why_ isn't Jared home. He promised he would come home. He promised." Jamie whispered.

"I don't know Jamie. I just don't know. But I do know that Jared loves us both very much, and he will do everything in his power to come back to us. Has Jared ever broken a promise to us?" I tried to be comforting, but my voice cracked in the last sentence, conveying my true emotion.

"He promised…." Jamie whispered so quietly, that I almost didn't here him. I knew that I would never be able to supply Jamie with a fulfilling answer. Instead I whispered, "I love you." He replied at the same volume, "I love you too." We fell asleep holding each other in a way that only blood family can.+

* * *

The next morning I didn't feel like getting out of bed. I didn't see the point in it, without Jared by my side. But then I remembered my promise. Jamie was keeping his, and I needed to keep mine too. I needed to be strong for Jamie. If I had nothing else to live for, I would keep my promise. I gently shook him awake as our words from last night echoed in my head. _He promised. He promised. He promised. _Jamie groaned, and I got the feeling that he hadn't had the best nights sleep.

Everyone looked tired at breakfast. I tried to eat my food, and I tried to get Jamie to eat his, but no one was very hungry. If Wanda had been optimistic yesterday, then she had grown tired of it by today. She kept her head down for most of the meal, her hand intertwined with Ian's. What little conversation I tried to start quickly faded. Finally I stood up and announced, "I am going to go work in the west garden. Come on Jamie." We both stood and left, but on my way out I noticed that Jeb was missing. This wouldn't mean anything to me if it was lunch or supper, but Jeb never missed breakfast. I figured that he must have something important to tend to, and decided that it was probably nothing.

Jamie and I worked all morning. We didn't talk much, but then again, it didn't seem as if anyone was in much of a talking mood today. The morning dragged on, each minute stretching on for an eternity. The tension throughout the cave was palpable. No played any games today, no one laughed, but no one complained either.

Finally, lunch arrived. It seemed as if Sharon was making a special effort to cheer everyone up, because we got little candy bars with our normal meal. This would usually make me pretty happy, but today the sweet chocolate just tasted like sawdust. I kept repeating the same sentences in my head, hoping if I said it enough than it would be true. _Jared's just held up. He'll be home soon. Jared's just held up. He'll be home soon._ Over, and over. Over, and over.

Jeb made an appearance at the very end of lunch, his face looking wary. He sat down at an empty table, dropping his plate down onto the table with a thud. He didn't even pretend to look like he was eating. It's hard to imagine how hard this must be for him. Some of his best men are on this raid, and if he looses them life will be a lot harder for all of us. People began to clear out of the cafeteria. It was a sign of just how bad things were, because people were throwing out most of their food. Waste is not a common thing in the caves.

When there were only a few people remaining, I stood up and walked over to Jeb. I slid into the seat across from him. He looked up at me and raised his eyebrows.

"Jeb, it's been two weeks. I think it's time we go and look for them." I said quietly to him.

"No." was all he said in response.

"Why not! Jeb, I can't keep living like this! This isn't a life. Everything is at a stand still while we wait for them, and I can't take it anymore. I'd rather risk my life than keep living like this!" I replied, my voice heavy with emotion.

Jeb slowly looked up at me. Up close, you could see wrinkle lines creased into his weathered face. Jeb was getting older and you could tell. He had smile lines, but he also had deep lines of concern engraved into his forehead. Jeb was responsible for an entire population of people, and it was finally starting to show. "Mel." He said in a calm voice.

"Mel," he repeated, "You know that I can't let you do that."

"And why not?" I shot back.

"Jamie. While you've been living half a life, he's been trying to keep it together, for you. He understands more than you think. Suppose you actually _died_ in search of Jared? Hmmm? Did you _even_ stop to think about Jamie? What that would do to him?" he replied.

I felt guilty for not realizing this sooner. I couldn't go, not with Jamie here all alone. I had been so busy trying to keep my promise, and trying to figure out a way to find Jared, that I had forgotten all about how me leaving would affect Jamie. I felt terrible. I didn't reply, but instead looked down at the old wooden table. I was ashamed that I had been so stupid.

"Besides, its not safe. If Jared was actually taken by the Soul's, then they may know our location. We may be sitting ducks, and they may be waiting for us to make a move. It's just not safe. I'm sorry Mel, but we just can't risk your life." His usually happy voice was dismissive. I knew the conversation was over.

**A/N: Not bad for my first fanfiction, eh? But that just my opinion, you could always leave a review to tell me? I would love that so much. Constructive criticism is an author's bread and butter! Follow me to find out what happens next, because it's going to get pretty crazy!**

**XOXO-EW**


	2. Mission

**A/N: This chapter picks up right after the last one ended. The last chapter was really setting up for the rest of the story, but now it's really going to get interesting. As always, it was a joy to write, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

**Disclaimer- I own no rights to The Host, I only own this computer, the clothes on my back and everything else in my room!**

I watched Jeb as he stood up and walked out of the room. I knew that he was right, but I still couldn't accept that we were going to just sit here and wait for them to return. There has to be _something_ we can do. I was still contemplating what Jeb had said when I realized everyone had already gone back to work, and I was alone in the room. Alone, accept Sharon, who was behind the counter making rolls. I watched her flour-covered hands kneed the dough and roll it into a little ball. Over and over, kneed roll, put on pan. Kneed, roll, put on pan. I don't think I could take such boring work. At least in the fields there is some change from day to day. I knew that I needed to go back to work too, but I couldn't make myself move from the bench. Work seemed so unimportant compared to the dilemma at hand.

I don't know how long I sat there. It could have been minutes, or it could have been hours, before Sharon came and put her hand on my back. I jumped at first, but when I realized that it was her, I turned around to see her concerned face.

"Mel, I am so sorry. I heard your conversation with Jeb," she said. She kept her hand on my back, but sat down with her lanky legs facing away from the table.

"Thanks. I just don't know what to do. I know that I can't just leave Jared out there to die. But, at the same time, I can't just leave Jamie here alone." I replied.

"So take him with you." Sharon replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"What? Jamie? I can't take Jamie with me, it's too dangerous. And I can't go at all, it would put the whole cave in danger."

"Mel, he's fourteen. He's spent half his life on the run or in this cave. I think he can handle it. And you're a grown ass girl, Jeb doesn't decide these things for you." She stated.

"Jamie will never go on a mission as dangerous as the one you're suggesting. End of story. And it's not that I can't make my own decisions, it's that Jeb's right. Anyway, I could never get out of the caves without Jeb realizing." I pointed out, skeptical of what she was saying.

"Oh, it's not a problem of Jeb realizing, it's a problem of getting out before he does." Sharon mused.

"Jeb would hate me forever." I said quietly.

"Please, Jeb wants you to go-" Sharon began.

"You heard everything, he very clearly stated that he _didn't _want me to go" I interrupted her.

"If anyone is going to find them, it's you. Even if Jeb doesn't want you to go, the rest of the cave _needs_ you to. Yeah, you would put us in danger, but we rely on the men out there. You either go on this mission, or we starve." Sharon continued after my interruption. She dropped her hand of my back, leaving a chalky white flour print on my grey tank top.

"Sharon. Jeb was right, I can't go. I want to, I want to so bad, but if something happened to me than Jamie would be all alone. After all he's been through, that's not fair to do to him." I protested.

"So we'll come with you, and make sure you live" Ian's voice came out from the dark. He and Wanda slipped out of the hallway and into the light. I gave her a puzzled look, but she just smirked. One hand was on her hip, and the other was holding Ian's hand tightly. Their love made a wave of pain consume me. I needed Jared right now, but I couldn't have him. My pain muddled my thoughts, making it hard to think clearly. I could only focus on one thing, my need for Jared. _Jared. Jared. Jared. I need Jared. Jared isn't here. Why isn't Jared here?_

Wanda's words brought me back to the cold reality of the situation at hand. "Oh please Mel, did you really think that we were going to let you go on a dangerous mission to find Jared, without us?" Wanda demanded.

"I- I wasn't really thinking about that, because you can't come. It's too dangerous! I'm not even sure if I'm going!" I retorted.

"Oh please Mel! Your mind was made before you ever spoke to Jeb, you just wanted his confirmation. Now you're just making up excuses for yourself, because you're scared!" Wanda accused me. I was outnumbered.

"I'm not scared! I just can't have you come with me. I would risk you're lives just as soon as I would risk Jamie's!"

"Let me get this straight. You are going to go on a secret mission to find Jared. Alone. In an alien world. And leave Jamie here. That was really your plan?" Wanda accused.

"Besides, even if you don't want us to come, we're coming. And you can't stop us. You step out that cave door, and we're right beside you" Ian said in a lighter tone. So there's no convincing them. Somehow, they just convinced me to go on a secret mission, without Jamie, to find Jared. I felt as if everything was falling apart around me, while they pretended that things were just getting started.

"So, the three of us are going on a mission to find Jared?" I asked, feeling like a small child being told what to do by an all-powerful adult.

"Four of us. You aren't going on the mission of a lifetime, and leaving me here." Sharon stated. Great. I should've never said anything to Jeb. I was just putting more people in danger to find someone who may already be…. dead. Or even worse, taken.

"So when do we leave" a small voice chided into the conversation. Jamie. His voice made me feel like the adult that I was again. And that adult was angry. Angry that they had just convinced me to concede to a dangerous mission that puts the entire cave in danger. Even angrier, that these plans had led Jamie to have the audacity to believe that he could come.

"Jamie! You're not coming! It's too dangerous." I scolded.

"Then I'll just have to tell Jeb about all of this." Jamie retorted.

"Are you black mailing me, Jamie?" I stammered. I couldn't believe him. His face was amused, which only ticked me off more.

"This is not a laughing matter Jamie!" I warned him.

"Aw hell, if the boy wants to go, let him." Ian exclaimed. He gave me a side look, which I returned in the form of a glare. This had nothing to do with Ian, Jamie is my little brother.

"Hey, Ian quick question. When have I ever asked you about helping me parent my little brother? Oh ya, that's right! Never! Not once." I snarled at Ian, my voice dripping with sarcasm. Ian looked wounded, and Wanda put her arm around his waist. Ian can be as wounded as he wanted, I don't really care. Ian always sort of annoyed me, but my annoyance at him was irrational. I still held it against him that he tried things with Wanda when she was still in my body.

Jamie cleared his throat, trying to diffuse the tension. "So ummm, is that a yes?" he asked me. I respected that he understood how little Ian's words meant.

"Do you promise to do exactly as I tell you?"

"Yes!" Jamie replied instantly.

"And you understand that you will spend most of the time in a car, waiting for us?" I continued.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah! Cars are my new best friend!" he confirmed.

"I suppose, _if_, you understand the danger, then yeah, you can come." He was hugging me before I even finished my sentence.

"Come on, we've got some planning to do before we leave." Sharon said.

"And when exactly are we leaving?" Ian asked.

"Tomorrow night." Sharon smiled.

* * *

The frigid night air filled my lungs. After being in the cave for so long, it felt too dry and too cold. I took a deep breath of the cool air and continued on. Trailing behind me was Jamie, closely followed by Wanda, Sharon, and finally Ian in the back.

"I hope you know this is insane!" I hissed behind me. Adrenaline was pumping through my veins, causing my heart to beat quickly. This was the most alive I had felt in weeks. I felt strange to enjoy something, especially with Jared missing.

We walked, and walked, and walked, something we were all used too. Finally we reached the concealed place where Ian keeps his Jeep. I threw the tarp off of his Jeep. I took a deep breath, trying to block out all the emotion the car triggered. _Now is not the time to get emotional,_ I told myself.

We were each carrying a dark grey backpack with some travel necessities. A couple days worth of food, incase we were separated, a blanket, and a knife. Even Jamie had a knife, because we felt as if it was important to have incased of combat. Of course, the goal was to not need a knife, but it was practical to have one. We also figured that we may need to take a Soul out of a body, and then a knife would come in handy. The only person who carried a gun was Ian, and he only carried a pistol. No one else was comfortable with such a harmful weapon.

We deposited our bags into the back of the Jeep and climbed in. Wanda drove incase we were pulled over, and we all wore jackets with hoods for the same reason. I even had everyone place blankets around their laps, just incase we needed to pretend to be asleep.

Wanda drove out into the dark desert with the tarp dragging behind the Jeep, to eliminate any tracks. No one spoke, and Jamie had fallen asleep. I put my head against the cool glass window and gazed up at the stars. You can't stars so clearly in the city, and not at all in the cave, so I cherished every moment I got to see their beauty.

"I'm coming for you Jared. I love you." I whispered out into the dark.

Jared's POV

_I wonder where Melanie is. I wonder if she's safe with Jamie. _I thought to myself.

"Stay strong Mel. I love you." I whispered into the dark.

**A/N: I am having so much fun with this! I think it's coming along well, but of course you could always leave a comment and let me know! Quick shout-out to my first follower, **music-is-mai-lfe, **thanks so much for following me! It means so much, especially because this is my first fanfiction. Another shout-out to the first person to comment (and only so far haha), **hawksgirl2481**. Thanks so much for commenting; it means a lot to me that you took the time to comment. **

**I'm going to try to update at least twice a weak, and that should be possible, because there are only 9 more days of school, so I shouldn't have too much homework. I've got a month of camp in the summer, so right before I leave I'll try to post a couple chapters. **

**XOXO- EW**


	3. Hayden

**A/N: Thanks so much for all the reviews! It means a ton to me that you take the time to review, especially since they are all good so far! Anyway, the mission really begins in this chapter. As always it was a joy to right, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

**Disclaimer- Stephanie Meyers has created a wonderful book, The Host, that I do not own.**

_I am at the lake. Someone is laughing, and I hear the sound of splashing water. Sharon. Sharon is laughing. But not the Sharon I know. This Sharon is so….young. This Sharon must be only four. Who is that with her? This person looks so young and carefree, just like Sharon. They look similar too; they both have light brown hair and thin lips. They must be related._

_Me. I'm the other little girl. And this is the lake our families used to visit in the summer. Sharon and I used to spend hours basking in the sun here. Aunt Maggie used to say that we looked like little Indians after spending all our in the sun. Me, they young me, see's myself, as I am today, and runs away into the woods. Then, Sharon sees me. Only, she does not have the hazel eyes that she should. Hey eyes have a wispy ring of silver around the pupil. _

_Sharon smiles at me, and motions for me to come closer to her. As I walk around the rocky beach toward her, she begins to grow. Her little chubby legs grow stronger, and longer. Her shoulders become broader and her hair shorter. The person standing in front of me is no longer Sharon. Jared stands before me with his arms open, as if to welcome me into a hug. I begin to run towards him and into his arms. I look up at his perfect face. I am back with Jared, just as I should be. He blinks, and I finally notice his eyes. They aren't brown, like they should be. They are the most awful color of silver and I shove him away from me. He frowns, and I scream…_**  
**

I woke up from my dream in a cold sweat. The sun is just rising in the east, causing the clouds to glow a reddish pink. My head is still against the window, I must have fallen asleep last night. I don't think I have to worry about falling asleep anymore, that dream has taken care of everything. The look on Jared's face, Jared as a Soul, has put a burning passion into my heart. If I was determined to find Jared before, now nothing can stop me. If I have to search every inch of this planet to find him, I will. If I have to spend the rest of my life in search of him, I will. There is no mountain too high, no ocean to deep, no Soul strong enough, to keep me from my love.

The car was very quiet, so quiet that I thought everyone else might still be asleep. Then someone's stomach let out a loud grumble. "Do you think we could get some food?" Jamie asked quietly. I got the sense that he didn't ask sooner, because he didn't want to be a burden.

"I'll get some food at the next stop." Wanda replied, while keeping her eyes on the road. Ever the Soul. Wanda was used to driving for a many hours at a time, because she usually went on raids with the men. She had gone on the last three, but Ian felt that she needed a break. All the other men took turns going on raids, and he felt that she should at least sit one raid out every once in a while.

We drove for about another thirty minutes before Wanda pulled up to a little gas station. It was one of the only inflections we had seen on the vast desert. Wanda stepped out of the car and clicked the lock down. I looked behind me and smiled at Jamie. He gave me a shaky smile in return. I could read him like a book, and knew that he was afraid. His skills were a bit rusty after so many months living a plush life in the caves.

Wanda's POV

My shoes clicked on the black asphalt of the parking lot. I could only imagine how hot it must have been, to the touch, after baking in the sun all day. There was only one other car, which I assumed belonged to the Soul who worked at the gas station. I pulled open the clean handle of the door and stepped into the little store. A small woman with a cleanly cut blonde bob looked up at me from the cash register. She wore little black sunglasses, which was understandable in the light of the desert. She gave me a tight smile and looked back to the magazine she was reading. I wondered why she did not great me, normally all Souls were very welcoming to one another.

I looked around the cramped store. Everything was fully stocked, and there were no price tags. I walked over to the far wall that was lined by three fridges with glass doors. I grabbed everyone an orange juice, and in the next isle I also grabbed everyone a pack of little white powder donuts.

I walked up to the counter and greeted the woman, while depositing the food on the counter. "Hello, I am Summer Wind. How has your morning been?"

"Well it was pretty great. That was, of course, until you walked in." The woman replied in a snide voice. That was not what I was expecting, and gasped in surprise.

"What? Little Soul not expecting some impoliteness? Little Soul not used to harshness?" she cashier snarled, dropping her magazine and standing up. I backed away from her, my mouth still open in astonishment. Then it clicked. The sunglasses, and the lack of greeting, suddenly made sense.

"You're-you're not a Soul" I stammered.

"Damn straight." She confirmed.

Melanie's POV

I was wide awake and alert, watching Wanda through the car windows. She had grabbed us some food, I couldn't tell what, and was know checking out. She dropped the food onto the cash register counter and was saying something to the cashier. The cashier suddenly stood up, and Wanda backed up into an isle end behind her, crunching the variety of chips being displayed behind her.

"Stay here!" I yelled at Jamie and jumped out of the car.

In a flash I was up and in the little store. Ian was behind me, and he was holding his knife so tightly that his knuckles were white. We arrived just in time to here the little blond cashier snarl, "Damn straight." I don't know what she was replying to, but she was clearly human, and a rouge one at that.

"God damn rouges," I heard Ian mumble behind me.

"What the hell is going on?" I yelled, trying to keep my voice calm, but failing. Wanda looked terrified. She kept on tightly closing her eyes, and then opening them again, as if she could will the entire situation away.

"What the hell? Are you with _it_?" the woman asked, her voice instantly annoying me.

Ian was angry. And I mean really angry. He stormed over to the counter the woman was standing behind, and slammed his huge fists down on the table. "Lets get one thing straight. Wanda is not an _it._ She is everything a human should be. She's compassionate, loving, kind, and beautiful. Everything you will never be. Lets get one more thing straight. There are five of us, and one of you." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder and towards the car. Jamie didn't really count, but she didn't need to know that. "So I would adjust your tone if you want to keep your little rouge life style up. K?" he yelled. The woman didn't look so confident anymore.

"What do you want with me?" She gulped.

"Let's have a little chat, and you might find out. Sittdown'." I commanded.

"What's your name?" Ian fired at her. It seemed like for once, in a long time, we were working in sync.

"Hayden. And who are you?" She spat back.

"Ha. That's funny; you think you can ask questions. Incorrect. I think it would be best if you only speak when you are directly answering one of our questions. K? Good. Now, what are you doing? What did you want with Wanda?" I asked her, my tone very accusatory.

"I was planning on stealing her ride. I didn't know there were more people in it." She replied, very clearly annoyed that she was being asked anything at all. As if she had somewhere to be.

"What's wrong with your car?" Wanda asked. I was surprised; I didn't expect Wanda to take part in our little interrogation.

"Engine died. I don't know how to fix it." She responded.

"What did you do with the person who should work here?" I demanded.

"I don't know. When I came here the door was open and no one was here. When I tried to leave, my car wouldn't start." She hissed at me, as if it was I had asked her a stupid question, when in fact it was a very reasonable question. God knows what she could have done to the Soul who should work here.

Something dawned on Ian, because his face lit up. "Do you know of Jared Howe, Kyle O'Shea, Andy Harper, or Aaron Collins?" he asked her with a sly grin. My heart filled with hope.

"No." she snarled. Just as quickly as my hope had come, it disappeared.

"Have there been any human sightings in this area in the past month?" I inquired, this time not allowing myself to believe that she could say anything helpful.

"Yes. Two weeks ago. There was a group of humans heading in that direction." She pointed west, the direction we had come from. "I was camping out in the desert, I saw the whole thing." She whispered, clearly happy that she had information that we needed

"What happened to them?" Ian yelled, his face inches from her snotty little face.

"The Seekers took them. All five." My heart dropped. Jared was gone. Jared was dead. Jared was occupied. I had lost Jared. Everything else became a blur, and I thought I was going to faint. Ian put his hand on my shoulder, and spoke in a low tone to me, "Mel don't worry. This isn't over. This is the best lead we have so far." I tried to breath and focus on what more information Hayden had to offer.

"Five?" Wanda asked. "You're sure there were five?" she repeated. She then turned to me, and said in a lower voice, "Mel, there were only four people on the raid."

"Yes five! Five men!" she confirmed in a very exasperated tone.

Ian turned and walked out of the store. Wanda followed him, and so did I, but not before grabbing our food. I expected Ian to get into the Jeep, but instead he walked over to Hayden's car. Wanda followed him over to her beat up little mini van. I quickly realized that Ian was planning on fixing the car when he lifted up the top of the hood to look at the engine. I however, hopped back into the Jeep and threw the food behind me.

"I'm assuming you guys heard all of that?" I asked Sharon and Jamie without turning around. I saw Jamie nod from the rearview mirror.

"Mel, what's a rouge?" Jamie asked. His small voice caused the stress of the fight indoors to almost melt entirely away.

"Someone who travels alone, fighting against the Souls." I replied.

"But Melanie, no one else knows how to take a Soul out of a body." He insisted.

"Jamie, they aren't fighting them like that. Rouges are _fighting_ the Souls. Fighting to kill." I explained. For a kid who had spent half his life in a world like this one, he sure could really be clueless sometimes.

"Oh." He whispered. A couple moments I turned around to see his face and shirt covered in white powder. His mouth was full and he gave me a big smile and thumbs up. _Oh Jamie. Jamie, Jamie, Jamie. How do you stay so innocent in such a world as this one?_

I saw Hayden exit the shop window with a couple bags of food. I glared at her when she noticed me. She walked over Ian and looked down at what he was doing.

"Why are you helping me?" she asked him. It almost pitied her. She had been living for so long with so much hate in her heart, that she honestly didn't recognize kindness when she saw it.

"Because we are good people. We are saving future Souls from your awfulness." Wand replied in a matter of fact tone. Ian slammed the hood back down. He had a smudge of oil on his angry face.

"Go find somewhere else to be awful. If we ever see you terrorizing Souls, like you did Wanda, again, we won't be so nice." Ian spat at her. He turned his back to her and hopped into the driver seat.

"Ian I can-" Wanda started to protest, but Ian stopped her, his voice still containing traces of his annoyance at Hayden. "Wanda honey, you've been driving all night. I think I you need a break, especially after that." Ian was growing on me. Wanda looked relieved and put her head against the window.

"So we know that they were taken by the Seekers." I said, my voice lacking inflection.

"Yes, but that may be a good thing. They aren't dead. And we know how to take a Soul out of a body, so now we just need to find them." Ian replied as he pulled onto the road. I got the sense that he didn't quite understand how awful it is to be occupied.

"And we can't even assume they put a Soul in them. I heard stories of them not putting Souls in bodies for a while, so that the Soul's wouldn't have to experience so many bad memories in their first few months in a body" Sharon stated. Surprisingly enough, their words actually provided me with some comfort.

Of course, that was before the sirens began.

**A/N: Ahhh cliffhanger! This was a long chapter, so I hope you enjoyed it. I typed it really quickly, so it might not be the best chapter, but I hope you are still enjoying the storyline, and looking forward to what's going to happen next! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! Your reviews can only make my work better, and they make me so happy!**

**XOXO- EW**


	4. Captive

**A/N: So, after that cliffhanger, I thought I'd be nice and give you a short chapter from Jared's point of view! I'm not going to give too much away, because I'm having far too much fun writing this to end it too quickly! Thanks so much for the reviews! There aren't too many, but I love reading them, and it means so much to me. This is my first fanfiction ever, and I finally understand why authors always beg readers to review! Reviews are magical! As always, it was a joy to write, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

**Disclaimer: (In the form of an awful poem)**

**Stephanie Meyer has written a book**

**Her book is worth a look**

**EW has written a story**

**But, please don't worry,**

**Stephanie Meyer still owns her book rights**

**So there will be no fights**

Jared's POV

"Come on. Get up. We don't have time for this." Seeker Bennett snapped. He jabbed his sharp elbow into my ribs, in the exact place he knew hurt the most. I missed the way Melanie woke me up, with a kiss on the cheek, and whispers about her love for me. After two weeks of this, I would even take the way Jamie woke me. Jamie used to run into Mel and my room and jump up onto our bed, shaking our shoulders and trying to tickle Mel.

I rolled out of bed and glared at Seeker Bennett. He smirked back. I wondered if they specifically picked the worst Souls to become Seekers, because every Seeker I have met in my time here has been truly awful. Especially Bennett. I suppose that's why they made him my permanent Seeker, or so it seems. In my first week here I met a different Seeker every day, until Bennett came. After my first time meeting him, he came back every day, three times a day.

He comes every morning to spit insults at me, and give me my breakfast. My breakfast is the same every day, scrambled eggs and one strip of bacon. He comes again at noon, or at least what I think is noon, to give me my lunch sandwich. He comes once more, with, surprise surprise, dinner.

I don't know where I am, but I'm guessing that I'm somewhere in Tuscan, because we didn't drive too far to get here. I'm not in a prison, my room is too nice to be in a prison. Besides, the Souls destroyed all the prisons when they took over. My room is medium sized, with a queen size metal bed sticking out of the center of one wall. The only other furniture, is a little metal table built into the far wall.

Seeker Bennet dropped my breakfast onto the table and sat on the edge of my bed. He was tall and stringy, with what appears to be an attempt at stubble on his chin. I guess he just isn't manly enough to grow a real beard, because all he has is patches of stubble on his sharp chin. His hair is dark brown that is unproportional to his stretched out face. He had a sharp point in the back of his skull, making him look like some strange type of dinosaur. He wears a black little suit that is too short in the arms for his strangly long arms.

"So how'd you sleep princess?" he sneered. I resisted the urge to jump up from my breakfast and beat his snide little ass.

I didn't reply, which made him angry. "I asked you a question, boy." He yelled, jumping up and slamming his fists on my table. I love it when he gets mad.

"Yes, it appears that you did ask me a question." I agreed, my voice entirely calm.

Bennett grabbed my breakfast and threw it across my room. I don't know why he felt the need to talk to me during his little visits, because he never asks me about the resistance, or who I am. This made me wonder what they were doing to the other men, and if they already had all the information they needed from putting Soul's into them. Of course, this also made me endlessly obsess about Melanie's safety. I was the raid leader, when we got caught. If she is dead, it's entirely my fault.

"You know, Bennett, patience is a virtue." I clucked.

Seeker Bennett ignored my question. "You know we've been watching what you do." Bennett purred, his face far too close to my own. "And we've heard something that interests us." He finished.

"Oh? And what has the royal 'we' heard that interests you." I asked, truly mastering the art of not showing emotion.

"You talk, or rather yell, in your sleep" Bennett whispered into my ear. That didn't surprise me; I couldn't sleep well with Melanie's safety on my mind.

"Gee, that just tells me so much." I imitated his whisper, while keeping the sarcasm dripping from my voice. I could feel his minty breath in my ear. I was still sitting facing the wall, and he was standing directly next to me.

"Does the name Melanie, Melanie Stryder, ring any bells?" he asked, this time standing all the way up, and walking back to the bed.

No. Not Melanie. They can't know about Melanie. She's my everything, the only thing worth living for. I will do anything to protect her.

"No! Not Melanie!" I cried out, before I could stop myself. I leaped up, pushing my chair behind me, again, without thinking. Not only have I put her in danger by being caught, I am only making things worse. I can never hate myself more than I do right now.

"Oh?" Bennett asked, his eyebrows raised, clearly glad that he had finally solicited an emotion from me.

"And who may I ask, this Melanie is?" he coaxed.

"No one. She's not anyone." I shot back, but it was too late. I was an idiot and now they knew that she meant something to me. He stood up and walked towards the door. He opened it, and stepped halfway out, and closed the door halfway.

"Oh. That's a shame, because we've got her in the other room." He commented, before stepping out the door. It locked with a click.

**A/N: Oh my dear cliffhanger, how I do love you. I'll try to update again tomorrow, so you don't die of cliffhanger-disease, but no promises. They're really making us work hard for these last 7 days of school! As always, REVIEW! I've got a good idea where I want the story to go, and I've still got lots of chapters and tricks up my sleeve, but I'm open to suggestions, so comment/ review with any ideas.**

**-XOXO EW**


	5. Saved

**A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in a couple of days, I've had a lot on my plate during these last few days of school. Luckily, I've only got four more days! No more cliffhangers….at least for a little while! Enjoy and then drop a review or two!**

**Disclaimer- The amazing Stephanie Meyer owns all the rights to The Host.**

"Ian! Ian!" Wanda wildly screamed. "Let me into the drivers seat!" Ian unbuckled and managed to slide over so that we were sharing my seat. Wanda squeezed through the partition between the drivers seat and passenger seat, and took the wheel. Ian then slid into the back, which let me tell you, is not an easy task for a bulky 200-pound male. This is what I live for, the adrenaline rush that comes with imminent danger. It's times like these that I feel the more alive than ever.

"Sunglasses on Ian!" I yelled behind me as I threw my own black shades onto my face. Sharon had already taken an 'asleep' position and Jamie already had his shades on. I couldn't help but smile. I hadn't had to do this in a while.

I thought my heart was going to beat right out of my chest, as Wanda pulled over. She rolled down the window as two Seekers strolled over to the Jeep. The first one, clearly the leader of the two, was an average sized woman with wavy brown hair and strong cheekbones. The second Seeker was a skinny man with fiery red hair and a heavily freckled face.

"Hello, my name is Summer Waves," The woman said in a soft voice. My heart surged forward. Her voice was far too kind to us to know who we were.

"And this is my companion, Nicky," she continued in her sing songy voice. Her companion nodded his head at us, but didn't speak.

"Hello Summer Waves and Nicky. My name is Singing River, and these are my companions, Tames the Fire, Racing Song, Flies in the Wind, and Petals Open to the Moon." Wanda improvised, pointing to each of us in turn. Her voice was just a bit too cheery, her words a bit too shaky. I hoped that our cover would hold.

"Oh, he's from the Fire World? So am I." Nicky said while nodding his head towards the Jamie. Nicky's voice was quiet, but not timid. I got the feeling that he wasn't one hundred percent convinced by our cover.

Without skipping a beat, Jamie answered, "Yes. I lived many lives there, before deciding to come to Earth." I smiled a bit to myself. Jamie had replied quickly and well.

"And where did you live there?" Nicky asked. His voice was challenging.

"The south. I helped with the resistance there." Jamie shot back, his face looking smug. Wanda looked worried, and shot me an almost imperceptible shake of her head.

"Oh! We have a former Seeker among us!" Summer Waves said with a wide smile. When no one spoke, she added, "How nice of you to help there. I heard the resistance there was quite….brutal."

"Yes well. How can we help you?" Wanda asked. I knew that she wanted to get away from the Seekers as fast as possible.

"Well, as I'm sure you know, there was a human sighting here a couple of weeks ago. And then, the dear old Soul who worked at the gas station was just too darn scared to come back. And then of course, one of our best Seekers went missing out here a couple of months ago." Summer Waves rambled.

"What my partner here, Summer Waves, is trying to do is ask what you are doing here, if you know that it isn't safe." Nicky interjected.

"We're on our way to Tuscan for a wedding." Wanda answered.

"And you chose to drive, instead of take a shuttle?" Nicky accused.

"My sister and I get flight sickness!" Jamie covered for us.

"I see." Summer Waves said in a sympathetic tone. Do Souls have a hatred for cars, or something?

"Well, we just wanted to warn you to be on your guard, and report anything out of the ordinary you see." Nicky informed us.

Wanda raised her eyebrows, and spoke in a very innocent tone, "Should we be afraid?"

"No, no, not at all!" Summer Waves confirmed.

"Oh, okay." Wanda sighed in a relieved voice.

"Well, we won't keep you any longer. Enjoy your stay in Tuscan." Summer Waves said in her every cheery voice.

"Oh we will, thank you! It was so nice to meet you!" Wanda gushed.

"Likewise." Nicky called behind him as he walked towards his car.

We all watched them slide into there cars. Right before Nicky sat in the drivers seat, I heard him mumble something to Summer Waves, "They aren't Souls."

"Drive!" I shrieked at Wanda. "They know! They know we aren't human!" I snarled as I pulled my knife out of the backpack at my feet. I saw the others do the same as Wanda slammed her foot onto the petal. In the rearview mirror I saw Nicky looking angry, and slightly irritated, as he too sped up.

Their car was faster, and very quickly they were almost driving next to us. Summer Waves didn't look quite so nice anymore. "Pull over!" She commanded into the loudspeaker mounted on their car. Wanda sped up even more, but they matched us. Nicky swerved their car, so that is slammed into the side of ours. Sparks flew and their car bounced back onto the other side of the road. I looked behind me to see Jamie hiding under a blanket, and burrowing his head into the side of Sharon. Ian had his gun out, and was rolling down the window.

"Ian no!" I yelped. We didn't need to hurt anyone to end this.

"Melanie, I'm not going to hurt them, just slow them down!" He yelled back. Wanda kept her eyes on the road with a very determined look on her face.

Ian took aim and shot one of their front wheels. Their car swerved and they ran into the ditch that lined either side of the desert highway. I could see Summer Waves jumping out of the car with a handgun as we drove away. She glared, and took a couple of shots at us. With every shot, Jamie let out a scream, but none of them hit us. We were already too far away, and they had already shrunk into the distance.

"Wanda, are you okay?" Ian panted, leaning forward, and putting his huge hand on her shoulder. She clenched her jaw and kept driving.

"Um, Mel." Jamie whispered. "What!" I snapped. I was angry that our position had been compromised, and even angrier that I had put Jamie in danger.

"Um, Mel! There's more!" he shrieked while pointing toward the sky. Above us, two helicopters were speeding towards us.

I groaned. First Hayden, and then a car chase, and now this. I just wanted to go get Jared and go home. Was that so much to ask for?

"Pull over!" Ian ordered. Wanda did as he said. Everyone, except Jamie of course, hopped out of the Jeep. Ian tossed each of us a handgun, leaving himself with a shotgun.

"Ian! Why did you bring these?" I protested.

"Mel, you didn't think that I would let us go into an alien city with just knives and one gun?" He shot back while cocking his gun.

"Don't call me Mel," I grumbled to myself.

The choppers were coming up fast. Each one held two armed Seekers, and in the distance we could see a Seeker car racing towards us.

"We're going to die." Sharon whispered.

"Like hell." I shot back. We stood in an outward facing circle, each of us holding a fully loaded gun.

As soon as the choppers were close enough, Ian started firing. He quickly realized how pointless firing at the choppers was; they were bullet proof. I kept firing, humoring myself. They were quickly upon us, hovering twenty yards away from us and about 30 feet up in the air.

"Put down your weapons. We don't want to hurt you. We just want to help you." I heard one of the Seekers warn through the loudspeakers. Yeah, they don't want to hurt us. They just want to takeover our bodies and minds. To help us.

As the car finally reached us, I realized that the blood of all these people was about to be on my hands. _Jamie's_ blood was going to be on my hands.

Two Seekers with loaded guns climbed out of the car.

"Drop your weapons!" one ordered, as another began to search our car. Sharon dropped her gun first, and gave me an apologetic look. Wanda's followed, and then mine. Ian grimaced as his gun finally fell from his hands, and clattered to the severe black asphalt.

The helicopters remained hovering over us, guns pointed at our heads. I saw the Seeker looking through our car leading Jamie over to us, a gun pointed at Jamie's back.

In a desperate rage I tried to punch the Seeker. "No one points a gun at Jamie!" I cried as I desperately tried to fight the Seeker. The Seeker was just too big, and silenced me with one blow to the temples. He smirked and walked back to his companion.

We were totally at their mercy. We were weaponless and outnumbered. We were going to die, and it was all my fault.

"If you don't want to be hurt, do as we tell you." One Seeker warned. Jamie whimpered as I put my arm around his shoulders.

"I love you so much. And I am so sorry." I whispered to him.

"Whoa there! Don't go saying good-byes just yet bitches!" A voice from behind me advised.

I turned just in time to see Hayden fire a bazooka at one of the helicopters. That's right, she fired a _bazooka,_ at the helicopter. I dropped to the ground, covering Jamie with my body to protect him. The helicopter spiraled out of control before exploding in the air. It rained debris and it was hard to see through all the thick black smoke.

"Jamie! Get to the car!" I screamed, while searching for the gun that I had dropped at the Seekers mercy, only minutes before.

"Hayden! What the hell?" Ian cried out, looking intensely baffled. That didn't surprise me. Ian has never been the sharpest tool in the shed.

After that, all hell broke loose. As the smoke began to clear, I realized that the majority of what was left of the helicopter had landed on the Seeker's car, and the car was now useless. Ian was firing at the remaining copter, while Sharon fought the woman Seeker that had come in the car. She threw a ducked a punch, before kneeing the Seeker. As the Seeker doubled over in pain, Sharon threw a punch that knocked the Seeker out.

"Don't kill them!" I screamed in the midst of the fire. Hayden had dropped her bazooka and was firing at the copter with Ian.

"Yeah right!" She snarled at me as the big male Seeker came towards her. Hayden kicked the Seeker in the chest, and staggered back a step. In their moment of separation, I shot at him, and hit his right shoulder. He pressed his hand to the wound then pulled it back. It was stained crimson red, and it didn't look like he could handle blood. He gave me on last confused look before fainting and falling to the ground.

"Lets finish this!" Haley snapped as she retrieved he bazooka once more. She took aim at the last copter, but I went and stood in front of the barrel.

"Don't do this!" I warned her. Everyone didn't need to die for us to win. Wanda had taught me that.

"Get the hell out of my way!" Hayden screeched. She had saved our lives, but she was still incredibly annoying.

"Look! They're retreating! We've already won!" I pointed out. She looked to the sky, and indeed, the helicopter was turning around. She scowled and lowered her bazooka. I got the feeling that she didn't get too many opportunities to use her bazooka, and I had just taken one of those few opportunities away from her.

"Jamie, they're gone!" I called behind me. Jamie timidly crawled out of the car. He looked both ways before he fully came out, reminding me of a Meer cat.

"Thank you so much. You saved us." Wanda praised Hayden.

"Ya well. I owed you one, for fixing my car and all. But now we're even. I don't owe you anything anymore. Anyways, my enemy's enemy is my friend. And the Seekers are my enemy." She replied. She even sounded slightly human.

"They aren't even Souls. Souls are supposed to be good people. That's why it's so hard to hate the Souls; they've made our world a better place. But not the Seekers. The Seekers are just as bad as us humans, maybe even worse. Seekers do things that other Souls don't do. They kill and they lie." She said, all in a rush. I couldn't believe that Hayden actually had emotions.

"How did you know we needed help?" Ian asked.

"I saw the Seeker car chasing you. I followed, just to make sure you guys made it out okay. With the kid and all." She muttered.

"Anyway, I'm leaving. See ya in hell, bitches." She finished, back to her normal self. She stowed her bazooka in her trunk, allowing us a glimpse of her extensive weapon collection. She slid into her car, backed up, and drove into the distance.

"How did they know we weren't Souls?" Jamie finally asked after a moment of silence.

"You said that you helped with the resistance in the south. But there was no resistance on the Fire Planet. You got the Seaweeds mixed up with the Fire Planet." Wanda answered, her voice ragged and tired. I couldn't blame her. A lot had happened in a really short period of time.

"Oh. I'm really sorry." Jamie apologized. I could see the pain on his face.

"Its not your fault," I comforted him as I walked over and gave him a hug. "You did good."

"We need to get out of here. We don't know if there will be more, and we won't have Hayden this time," Ian advised. He was looking to the east, the direction that the Seekers had come from. I nodded and we all began to return to the safety of the Jeep.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Sharon murmured to herself as she climbed in.

"Crazy shit." I replied. She laughed, "Yeah, I guess I have."

"And it's only going to get crazier from here." Ian put in.

"Is that even possible?" Sharon puzzled.

"Hell yeah!" Wanda laughed. I raised my eyebrows at her cursing, and she shrugged as a response. I guess the language from all the missions with the boys was rubbing off on her.

"This is fun." Jamie exclaimed.

"That's not exactly the word I would have picked…" Sharon mused. I didn't care if it was fun or not. I was happy that Jamie was having fun, but my goal wasn't to have fun. My goal was to find Jared.

**A/N: Not my best chapter, I had a lot of trouble with all the action, but I hope you enjoyed it. I'll try to update at least once this week, and that shouldn't be too hard. Anyway, I hope I've still got you're interest. Leave me a review and tell me if you like where the story is going! Or, just review because it makes me super happy and I will love you forever if you do ;)! **

**XOXO- EW**


	6. Stranded

**A/N: Bit-O'-Drama chapter! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer- The Host belongs to Stephenie Meyer**

I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. It was hard to imagine that just yesterday night we had left the cave, and now we were here. I dreamed about the day that Jared left, about the warmth of his arms around me, and the promises we made each other. It didn't feel like my life; it felt like I was watching a movie about someone else's life. It was difficult to imagine a time when I had been that happy, and how that was even possible when we lived in the world that we did. I slept all night, but I was plagued by memories of Jared. When I woke my cheeks were wet with tears. I wiped them away before anyone could see them.

Jamie hadn't been into the city in a long time and despite my warnings, had his face pressed against the glass as we drove. The city still didn't feel like a city to me, with its perfectly clean streets, and overall calmness. There wasn't the hum of a city anymore; there were no sirens or honking horns. There were no homeless people lining the streets, but instead complete strangers starting up conversations. After a while, I had to turn away from the window, because it was too disturbing.

Eventually, Wanda pulled over to the side of the road and put the car into park.

"We need a plan. We can't just drive around the city and hope that we find something." She said.

"I don't know what else to do. All we know is that they were taken." I answered, my shoulders slumping over in frustration.

"Where did they keep you, Melanie, when they put Wanda into you?" Ian asked.

"That building, the one over there," Wanda pointed to the tallest building in the skyline. "That's the Seeker headquarters. It's where they do insertions" Wanda informed us. I shuddered in remembrance of my first days with Wanda inside of my body, before we started helping each other.

"That does seam like a good place to start." Sharon mused.

"But how would we get in?" Jamie asked.

"Wanda could go in, in search of a Seeker friend. She could go up to one of the top levels and do some snooping?" I suggested.

"Sounds good to me, but I can't promise that I will find anything." Wanda conceded.

We arrived outside of the building in a matter of minutes. There wasn't any traffic in the city, yet another thing the Souls fixed. Most of the Souls rode bikes or walked.

"Good luck. Be safe, I love you." Ian said as he kissed Wanda on the cheek. My heart skipped a beet, as it did every time I thought of Jared, which was whenever Wanda and Ian showed affection for one another. "Don't get caught!" Sharon advised, trying to lighten the mood with a joke. Wanda let out a short, forced laugh, and stepped out of the car.

Wanda's POV

"Hello! My name is Moon Waves. How may I help you?" the attendant at the desk in the lobby asked me. Her hair was bright red, with dark brown roots. I really wanted to say something sarcastic about it, such as, "Awesome bottle dye job, I can see your roots," but that wouldn't be very Soul like. Melanie's sarcasm was really rubbing off on me, and I didn't like these urges to say such rude things.

"I'm looking for my friend, she's a Seeker." I responded, trying to match her level of pep, but came across fake.

"Oh, well isn't that nice! Do you know what floor she works on?" Moon Waves asked, not seeming to notice my lack of enthusiasm.

"I'm afraid not. Her name is Among the Stars? Sorry I don't know anything else." I said, giving her a generic Soul name.

"Well, let me just search our data base." Moon Waves suggested.

"Oh don't do that!" I blurted out. Moon Waves raised her eyebrows at me, and I tried to patch up my outburst. "She's umm new here! She probably won't be in the data base yet."

"Very well, perhaps we could call her down here, via intercom?" Moon Waves suggested.

"Oh no, I don't want to be any trouble. Maybe you could just tell me what level most Seekers work one?" I pressed.

"I suppose" Moon Waves said, clearly looking unhappy that she couldn't help more. "Do you know what she does, as a Seeker?" Moon Waves coaxed.

"She, um, she works in the Seeker's Headquarters." I lied.

"Yes! Now we're getting somewhere!" Moon Waves exclaimed. "Headquarters are on the 42nd level." She informed me.

"Thank you very much!" I thanked her.

"Glad to be of service!" She grinned, and it made me just a bit sad that she got so much joy from simply helping me.

"And…um…I like your hair!" I exclaimed as I walked towards the elevator. She grinned from ear to ear, which made me smile too.

I stepped out of the elevator and into a bustling office. Everything was clean and pristine, but phones were ringing off their hooks, and Souls were rushing about.

I walked over to the receptionist, and asked, "What's going on? Why is everyone rushing around so much?" The receptionist looked startled, and looked up from the notes she was taking.

"Have you not heard? There's been another attack! A human attack!" the receptionist exclaimed.

"Oh goodness! Where?" I asked, assuming that they were referring to us, but wanting to be sure.

"Out in the desert! That just tops it, I am never going near the desert- ever!" She exclaimed, her face wrinkled with stress. "It was very nice to meet you, but if you will please excuse me, I've got to take this to the Seekers up stairs!" The receptionist dismissed herself while waving a manila envelope in the air. She rushed onto the elevator, her long blonde ponytail swinging behind her.

I scanned the office, until my eyes landed on an empty desk in the corner of the room. It was the only desk with any form of partition separating it from the other desks; it had a thin fake wall separating it from the desk next to it, making a sort of corner office. I figured it must belong to someone of some importance, so I took the liberty of sitting at it. I didn't think anyone would notice with everything going on around me.

The desk was perfectly neat, with all of its sticky notes lined up according to color, and it's pencils perfectly sharpened. I clicked on the black computer screen to find an open e-mail, belonging to someone named Jessica. I scrolled through quickly, looking for something that stood out. My snooping was rewarded with an e-mail labeled Top-Secret. It was hard to believe how easy it was to find something just sitting there, labeled Top-Secret. Of course, no good Soul would click on anything labeled Top-Secret, so I did. I didn't know how long it would be until Jessica came to her desk, or someone else realized that I wasn't supposed to be there, so I scanned through it quickly. It was something related to Soul insertion, and I figured it might be relevant, so I printed it. Two pages slid smoothly out of the small printer to the left of me. I grabbed it and slid it into the messenger bad I was carrying.

I then swiveled her chair to the file cabinets to my left. I pulled open the first drawer, and scanned through the neatly written file names. I passed through multiple rows of irrelevant titles, such as 'Singing Planet Ships' and 'Spider Insertion,' before deeming the drawer irrelevant. It wasn't until the third drawer that I found anything of importance. The first folder was labeled, 'Resistance,' and I immediately put this one into my bag. The second, was labeled, 'Stryder,' which I figured was the official report of what happened when I was put into Melanie. This intrigued me, because even if it didn't have to do with our mission to find Jared, I was interested to see what they wrote about it. The final one was simply labeled, 'Top Secret,' and that was enough information to take it. I knew that anything labeled top-secret had to be _really_ important, because Souls don't have government, or ranking, so anything labeled top-secret must be pretty important.

With my folders stowed safely in my bag, I stood up and walked out of the makeshift office. When the elevators opened, I walked in without looking, and bumped into the shoulder of a tall severe looking woman. She had long black hair, high cheekbones, and straight black bangs.

"Sorry" I muttered as I stepped out of her way. She nodded at me and stepped out. As the doors closed, I heard someone greet her, "Hello Jessica!" I couldn't help but smile at my impeccable timing.

I reached the car in record time, only having to speak to one other Soul, the doorman. I slid into the car and finally let my breath out.

"Did you find anything?" Melanie asked.

"I don't know." I said, handing over my bag. Melanie opened it up and handed everyone a folder, and gave me the e-mail. She left herself the Top-Secret folder, which was fair, considering this was her mission.

Melanie's POV

I scanned through the folder. The first thing in it was a typed letter from someone named Rick to someone else named Jessica.

_Dear Jessica (Insertion Coordinator),_

_Today is a somber day that shall go down in Soul history. Today a ship of Souls came from the Fire Planet. As always, we opened the cryotanks to ensure that the Souls were safe, and healthy. As I type these words, tears roll down my cheeks, for a travesty of mass proportion has occurred. Every single Soul was dead. Upon further examination, it was determined that this was true for every ship, from every planet. The means of death is yet to be determined, but no Souls survived. Of course, this means that, as of now, there are no Souls for insertion. The ships and cryotanks were in perfect condition, so we know that there was no battle or struggle. Keep these poor Souls in your mind and heart. I do not need to tell you, that this is confidential information that should not be shared, unit it is determined what this means._

_Sincerely and Regretfully,_

_Rick (Master of Ships)_

I couldn't believe what I was reading. I was in a daze, trying to process the information that I had just read. The Souls were dead? Why? Are the Earth Souls going to die too? Are the Souls stranded here?

"Mel! Mel! Are you okay? What did you find?" Ian exclaimed, while shaking my shoulder. My eyes were wide as I handed him the letter. He read it and passed it on to Wanda, who then passed it to Sharon. Everyone was silent after reading it, enveloped in his or her own emotions and thoughts. After a moment of complete silence, I went back to looking in the envelope. There had to be more, the letter was dated just over a week ago. There was only one other letter in the entire envelope.

_Dear Jessica (Insertion Coordinator),_

_I shall try to convey as little emotion as possible as I write this; because words cannot express the pain I am experiencing. Every ship that has come after my last letter is the same. Every Soul inside is dead. After hours of hard work, we have determined the cause of death. It seems as if a plague has killed all of the Souls, on every planet, and on every ship. As of now, we are the only Souls left, and we are stranded on Earth. We have not yet determined the source of the disease, but we know that humans are not affected. We have halted all deployment of Souls to other planets. Instead, they are being held in their cryotanks until we decide what the appropriate measures are._

_Sincerely and Sorrowfully,_

_Rick (Master of Ships)_

I passed this letter around the silent car, as well. After several minutes of complete silence, Jamie spoke, "Wh-What does this mean?"

"There are no more Souls. We're alone." Wanda whispered.

So many emotions were spinning through my head. I felt dizzy, and though I might faint.

"That means Jared's alive. They couldn't put a Soul in him, there are no Souls." I whispered.

"But it also means that the Souls are stranded here." Ian put in, his voice gruff and restrained. With that Wanda doubled over, and started to sob.

**A/N: I suffered from a lot of writers block during this chapter, but I kept going, like the true studying/laundry procrastinator I am. Anyway, bit of a twist, but I hope that you enjoyed. I tried to make the letters as realistic as possible, which was hard to do. Review! I can't stress that enough! Review! Thanks for reading and reviewing!**

**XOXO- EW**


	7. Free

**A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update, the last few days were a bit hectic with school ending and everything. It was also a bit hectic with a particularly adorable blonde…..Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer- Stephenie Meyers owns all rights to The Host. **

After a couple of minutes Wanda finally began to settle down. "I'm so sorry, I j-just feel so bad for the-the Souls who didn't do anything." She choked out onto Ian's shoulder. "It's okay, babe. Let it out." Ian whispered to her.

"Umm, guys, I think you may want to see this." Sharon interrupted, tapping Ian on the shoulder.

"Hold on a sec." Ian cast her off, prioritizing Wanda over Sharon.

"No your_ really_ gonna want to see this!" Sharon insisted, her voice much more assertive.

"What? What is it?" Ian hissed.

"Whoa, everyone! Lets just take a deep breath and calm down." I soothed. Between Wanda's whimpering, and Ian and Sharon's squabble, the tension in the car was palpable. "Now, Sharon, what is it?" I asked.

"It's about Jared. I think I know where he is." Sharon finally informed us. Just hearing his name made my heart beat faster, but the words that came after made me feel like I was going to faint.

"You know where he is!" I shrieked. Sharon handed me a sheet of paper from Ian's folder, which she had picked up after Ian started comforting Wanda.

"Resistance Members Aaron Daniels, Kyle O'Shea, and Jared Howe, being held at Seeker Headquarters for further investigation. Level 58" I practically screamed.

"Shhhh!" Jamie whisper yelled. "We're in enemy territory!" I got the feeling that he viewed the whole mission as a video game. In some respects that was okay. It would make him take risks, but it would also keep him from taking everything as seriously as he should.

"Omigod! Omigod! Omigod!" I started hyperventilating. I couldn't believe that it was this easy.

"Melanie breath!" Ian commanded.

"They're right up there! We could go get them right now! We could go get Jared right now!" Words were spilling from my mouth so quickly that I didn't get a chance to breath.

"Without a plan? When the building in crawling with Seekers? Yeah right!" Sharon said, her tone just a bit too sarcastic for my liking.

"We need to go somewhere more secure, and make a plan." Ian commanded. They could make all the plans they wanted as long as it meant that I got my Jared back.

* * *

"I don't think I've ever felt something quite so soft…." Jamie muttered as he stroked the soft coverlet of the hotel comforter.

"And I don't think I've ever tasted something quite so beautiful," Ian said through a mouth full of steak.

"Do you think we can take this with us?" Sharon asked Wanda, while holding up a bar of lemon scented soap.

Wanda had put us up in the nicest hotel in Tuscan. Then, she had promptly ordered a huge feast from room service. "We can't plan on an empty stomach." Wanda had said, while shrugging her shoulders and dialing room service. "Plus, they have crème brulee!" Jamie had shrieked. Now, a table was set in front of us, including a whole area of deserts and fruits, four different kinds of rolls, a steak for each of us, chocolate fondue, and a dozen and a half doughnuts. Wanda had shrugged when she ordered the doughnuts, and said, "Midnight snack!" As if that excused ordering enough food for the entire cave. Now, everyone had taken a hot shower and was lounging on the beds planning. Or at least, trying to plan. Just eating in the case of Ian. I on the other hand had not taken a bite of the massive feast.

"Focus!" I scolded everyone. "Your brothers up there too, Ian," I chided, feeling like a teacher telling its students to be quiet and do their work.

"Okay, okay. I'm focusing." Ian said, with a mouth full of an entire soft white roll, as he sat up from the bed.

"We need to decide when's the best time to do this-break in." I said.

"Well we can't go with the light out, it would be impossible to sneak out." Sharon declared.

"We have to! It's risky, but it would be even riskier to break in!" Ian protested. Wanda snickered. She had chocolate on her nose.

"What's so funny? Hmmm?" Ian directed his question at Wanda, his eyebrows raised.

"No, it's just cute, that you think we're breaking in." Wanda giggled.

"Oh? And how else would we get in, at night?" Ian asked, his voice sarcastic.

"Oh, honey. Honey, honey, honey." Wanda teased. "Have you ever come across a locked Soul door?" Wanda sang, her smile slightly lopsided. Ian scowled.

"So it's not a question of _how_ we get in, its_ when_ we get in." I concluded.

"Morning. I say we leave around five. That way, we can get back to the caves before night, but it'll still be dark when we get them." Wanda suggested.

"We can't really plan much else, because we don't know what's up there." Sharon pointed out. We spent the rest of the night planning, and working out the minute details.

* * *

Jared's POV

I didn't sleep well that night. I dozed off once, only to be awoken by a nightmare including Melanie and some particularly nasty Seekers. After that, I spent the rest of the night reminiscing about days in the cave with Melanie. She was so perfect and everything she did was pure perfection. There wasn't a single kiss that we shared that I didn't feel like my heart was going to beat right out of my chest. When she touched me she left a trail of fire, hotter than any sun. The day that I left, and the promises that we made each other, replayed in my mind a thousand times.

I was sprawled out on the bed when Seeker Bennett came in. He was holding my usual breakfast, and wore his usual snarky expression.

"How'd ya sleep princess?" He asked as he walked over to my desk. He placed my meal down on it, and sat down in my chair.

"Not my best night. But of course, it couldn't be as bad as yours." I replied.

"Oh? And what makes you think that my night was bad?" He asked, cocking his head to the side. He looked remarkably like a chicken.

"Well, you're you. So every moment of your life simply _has_ to be awful, being you and all." I replied. It wasn't my best insult, but I was feeling especially down, and had no one but him to take it out on.

"I'm laughing so hard! You are so funny!" He said in a monotone voice.

"Well I did win the class clown award in fifth grade." I gushed while shrugging my shoulders. "You know, I really do love our little gab fests." I confessed after he didn't reply.

"Yes well." Bennett said through clenched teeth.

As I opened my mouth, I heard a commotion out side. There was a crash and a shriek, that quickly escaladed into a full blown scream. Bennett stood up and rushed to the door. He took a peak out, and looked back at me. His face was pale.

What could possibly be out there, that caused him to look so distressed?

"What is it?" I asked, standing up.

"Ummm nothing that concerned you." Bennett barked, while closing the door. The noise got louder, and there was a gunshot. I rushed over to Bennet, who was feverishly trying to lock the door, from the outside, while staying inside at the same time.

"You're a _really_ shitty liar!" I growled as I did what I had wanted to do since the day I met Bennett; I smashed my fist into his frightful face.

"I won't hesitate to kill you!" Bennet gasped as I threw another punch at his face. He tried to block me, but he was far too out of practice for someone whose job was to deal with fugitives. He got one good punch in and a weak knee in the crotch, before I gave him one last punch. He fell to the ground, his nose leaking blood.

"Dick." I muttered as I kicked him one more time in the left rib.

"And this one's just for good measure." I snarled as I kicked him in the right rib.

The door was slightly ajar. I got a taste of freedom for the first time in two weeks, as I stepped out into the hallway. The scene that lay before me was absolutely gruesome. To my left, a large Seeker was lying in a pool of blood. Another was clutching her left abdomen, while doubling over in pain. She finally passed out, and fell against the wall. To my right, another Seeker was passed out with blood running down his nose. The fourth Seeker's arm was bent in an unnatural way, as he lay on the cold tile ground.

I couldn't move. This was not the work of anyone from the cave; no one would ever do something so awful. After Wanda came we never kill Souls. We only remove them from a body, or injure them enough to get away, not kill them. I couldn't imagine who would be so awful to do something so terrible. Not knowing which way to turn, I turned the less gruesome way; right. I dodged in between the Seekers bodies as I sprinted down the hallway.

The next hallway was much brighter than the last, with large windows on one side. There was only one Seeker in this hallway, which was lying face down on the white tile. I didn't want to know what the other side of his body looked like. Outside the window, I could see that it was still dark, and I was up high in a building, probably about level 55. I was right; I was still in Tuscan, probably the middle of the business district. It must have been pretty early, because I could only see a few cars on the road beneath me. The hallway was not very long, only about 50 yards. There were only three doors in the entire hallway and each one was locked.

I ran back to my old room, to Seeker Bennett. I knew that I didn't have much time before more Seekers arrived, so I grabbed the keychain off of his belt loop. He began to stir, so I gave him one more kick to the side, before running back to the other hallway. I could hear him moan as I went.

I feverishly tried every lock on the first door. One the sixth key, it finally opened, but it was just an empty room, identical to my own. The second room was already open. The bed wasn't made, and an uneaten breakfast was on the table. Someone had clearly just left this room. It wasn't until the third, and last door that I found any luck. It opened on the third key.

I practically fell in as the door swung open. In the very corner of the bed, balled up in a tight ball, was Regan. She looked up at me; her big brown eyes huge with fear.

"Jared!" she cried as she ran to me. She wrapped her thin arms around my waist. She was still shaking. I picked her up, and gave her a big bear hug. I ruffled her hair and she gave me a shaky grin.

"Hey kido. I missed you." I whispered to her. "We need to get out of here, we don't know when more Seekers are going to arrive." I explained to her. She was only fourteen, and she had bean taken in the beginning. She didn't quiet understand how dangerous Seekers were yet.

"Okay." She nodded. "Let's do this."

"That's my sister," I confirmed, giving her hair one more ruffle.

"How did you find me? And what happened here?" Regan asked as we ran down the hallway.

"I'll explain more later. We need to find the other three men on the raid with me." I replied as I tried the first door on the next hallway. This hallway was identical to the last one, only it had six doors and was twice as long.

"Oh. Did you do all of this, to the Seekers?" Regan asked as she gestured around her. This hallway had three Seekers, two of which were lying in a pool of blood.

"No, I don't know who did." I replied as I ran onto the next door, after finding the room empty. I jammed the keys in, one after another, until I felt something cool on my temple.

I slowly turned my head to see a tall, buff, man holding a gun to my head. He looked slightly deranged as he glared at me, but his eyes were human. Another man stood to my left, holding a knife to Regan's head. No! I just found Regan again! I can't loose her!

"It'll be best, if you don't talk." The man with the gun to my head advised, with a very heavy southern accent.

**A/N: Sort of cliffhanger thing! Not a bad chapter, but then again, you could always drop a review and enlighten me on that ;) I think you get it, reviews are magical and I will love you forever if you drop one!  
XOXO-EW**


	8. Found

**A/N: Schools finally out! Now I've only got a week to camp, so I think I can wrap up this story before I go. Directions- 1) Read 2) Reflect 3) Review ;) Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer- Stephenie Meyer owns all rights to The Host. Yada, yada, yada**

Melanie's POV

"Let's do this shit." Ian muttered as he pulled open the door and stepped into the dark lobby. The lobby of the Seekers headquarters was large, and looked more like a hotel lobby then anything else. The floor was made up of large granite squares, except to my left, where there were plush white couches and thick white carpeting. Glass chandeliers hung from the high ceiling and on every table there was a flower arrangement of some sort. Directly in front of me, sat an empty reception desk with a granite top.

I tried to tread as lightly as possible as we made our way to the elevators. The sleek doors slid open as soon as I pressed the button. I stepped in, taking a deep breath as I did so. I reverted back to my habit of repeating the facts in my head, over and over, to calm myself._ We're going to get Jared! Jared is safe! We're going to get Jared! Jared is safe!_

"Um, Mel?" Sharon asked. I realized that the doors had closed, and I still hadn't pressed the button yet.

"Oh yeah. Haha, sorry," I apologized with a shaky laugh. I took one more deep breath, and pressed the button. Level 58. My new favorite number.

I could feel the elevator rise up, giving my stomach a queasy sensation. Sharon was gripping the railing in the elevator so tightly, that her knuckles were turning white. Her eyes were wide with fear. I put my hand on hers and gave her a small smile. She nodded at me, but still looked scared. Ian and Wanda were holding each other's hands and smiling at each other. My heart skipped a beat.

With every level we passed, the elevator made a little beep. I counted each beautiful beep, until I reached 58, and the doors slid open. I stepped out into the hallway, and looked both ways. The lights were off, and it took my eyes a moment to adjust. I was standing in a little reception area, complete with a reception desk and a little cube of couches and coffee tables. Jamie reached for the light switch, but I stopped his hand before he could reach it.

"Dark is good." I whispered and motioned for everyone to follow me. Two hallways branched off from the reception area, only one of which having a door. I took the one with the door, figuring it may have more to hide. It was unlocked, just as Wanda said it would be. Wanda gave Ian a pointed look and he glared back.

"Holy shit!" I screamed when I saw what was behind the door. Ian threw his hands over my mouth and pulled me back from the door. I closed it and stood in front of it, leaning on it for support.

"What was it?" Jamie hurriedly asked.

"Maybe-maybe Jamie should wait here? Sharon could stay with him maybe?" I whispered. It wasn't exactly an answer, but Jamie didn't need to see or know what was behind that door.

"Why? Melanie, what's behind the door?" Sharon asked.

"Let me see," Ian commanded as he shoved me out of the way. He took one peak, turned back around, and agreed, "Yeah, maybe they should stay here."

"Fine!" Jamie snarled, his anger evident in his face. He stormed over and took a seat on one of the plush white couches. "I'll just stay here, and enjoy this candy- without any of you!" Jamie angrily proclaimed, pointing to the bowl of candy on the coffee table.

"I guess I will too?" Sharon muttered as she took a seat, putting her feet up on the table. I opened the door for the second time and allowed Ian and Wanda to enter, before me. Sharon flicked me off before I stepped in.

Wanda gasped, at the scene laid out before her. "What- what happened here?" She gasped.

"Someone beat us to it- to them." Ian gulped. In front of us in the somewhat lit hallway, four Seekers bodies lay strewn across the ground. Blood was everywhere, and each Seeker was adorned with a very unique and gruesome injury. Wanda hyperventilated for a moment, but Ian put his arm around her shoulder, and she calmed a bit. As we dodged the bodies, trying not to look at their faces, we came to an open door.

"It's a cell." Ian muttered as he looked inside. It was indeed, with a large bed, small table and chair, and no window. Everything was made of stainless steel, something Seekers seam especially in love with. There was an uneaten breakfast on the table, which made my stomach grumble. I wished that I had eaten something from the feast the night before.

"Look!" Wanda pointed to the ground, where a Seeker laid. This one only had a black eye, or at least, that was the only injury visible to us. The Seeker looked like he deserved whatever he got- he looked like an extreme ass.

"This must have happened recently- or this Seeker would be awake by now. This just looks like a fist fight." I said.

"Who do you think did it?" Ian asked.

"Someone else who had important people in here." Wanda theorized.

"Do you think they took our guys too?" I asked. We were so close- and now this. I just wanted my Jared back. Was that _so_ much to ask for?

"Maybe. They would have had to open all the doors, to find their guys. They may have found our guys along the way." Ian speculated.

"Come on. There will probably be more Seekers soon." I warned as I began to jog through the hallway again. The next hallway was all the same, with every room empty. This hallway was lined with windows, and we could see the sun rising on the Tuscan skyline. The sky was painted orange, yellow, and even pink hues. It was very pretty, but we had no time to admire it as we ran. This hallway was lined with dead or severely injured Seekers, too.

In the next hallway there weren't any Seekers. It was barely lit, and it had no doors. I ran through it quickly and made a sharp turn into the next hallway. I ran straight into a huge, buff, man with a long grizzly beard. He turned to me, his human eyes huge with surprise. I took a step back, stepping back into Ian and Wanda.

"Look! Joe! There's more!" The man hollered in a heavy southern accent.

"Just when we were about to leave!" Another man, presumably Joe, mumbled as he came out from a doorway to our left. Three men came out behind him, each one just as big, or bigger, than the last.

"I'm- I'm sorry. We're just looking for our men." Ian stuttered.

"How interesting-" The man I had run into began, but he was interrupted by a yell.

"Seekers! They're coming into the building!" Yet another man yelled, coming around the corner, and standing behind us, blocking any chance of exit.

"Tie em' up!" The leader, Joe, instructed his men.

"Jamie! Sharon!" I breathed under my breath to Wanda, whose eyes became wide with fear. I was stupid, and hadn't been careful. Now, we were being captured, without Jared, and Jamie and Sharon were about to be taken by Seekers. I hated myself so much. I had put everyone in danger to save someone I love, but had only made things worse. Jeb was better off without me; I couldn't do anything right for the cave.

* * *

Jared's POV

I struggled against my bonds, for the umpteenth time that hour. Regan was right next from me, and I wished I could comfort her, but she was just out of my reach. Kyle, Aaron, and Andy, were also tied to chairs, and lined up next to me. The warehouse was dark, but I knew that it was some kind of packing facility. Large wooden boxes were stacked up everywhere, making a sort of room around us. I didn't know what the men planned to do with us, but I knew that I was safer with the Seekers than in these men's care.

I closed my eyes and thought about Melanie. I wanted her to be my last thoughts, if I was going to die. I remembered a movie night we had had in the game room. Jeb used to bring in a big projector and hang a sheet up, for the screen. Everyone would pile into the room, bringing blankets and pillows to lie down on. Sometimes we would get candy, or even popcorn. One night we were watching The Wizard Of Oz, and Melanie had fallen asleep on my shoulder. I didn't want to wake her when the movie ended, so I carried her back to our room. In the morning, she woke up, and asked me how she got back to bed. I told her that I had carried her back. I remember that she started rolling on the ground laughing, the most beautiful laugh in the world. To this day, I don't know why that made her laugh so hard, but it just did.

I thought I heard her voice, for a second there, but I figured that it must just be me hearing her voice, I missed her so much. It wasn't until I hear a very loud, "Fuck you bitch," that my eyes flew open. Only Melanie would say something so insulting to her captor. My heart began to beat faster, and I heard footsteps coming towards our makeshift room.

A huge man was carrying Melanie into our room. She was glaring at him as he tied her down to a chair. She tried to scratch him, once, which resulted in a slap to the face.

"No one curses at my beautiful lady, Helga!" The man hissed at Melanie, while pointing to a very manly woman standing at the box-created doorway.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know _it_ was classified as a female!" Melanie smirked, her face challenging. The man kicked her chair over, so that her back was on the ground and her feet were in the air. The man stalked out of the room, and Melanie tried to use centripetal force to get upright, by slamming her legs into the seat. It didn't work, and she finally gave up. It wasn't till then, that she noticed us, on the other side of the room.

I got a good look at her worn out, but gorgeous face. She let out a joyful scream when she recognized us. "Jared!" She screamed. "I found you!" tears began to roll down her face.

"Melanie! Melanie I love you!" I yelled back, hoping that she couldn't hear the lump in my throat. My heart soared, it leaped, it danced for joy.

"I love you more! You don't know what I've been through to find you!" She sniffled. I reached my hand out for her, knowing very well, that she was too far away to reach it. She reached hers out too and began to cry even harder.

"Don't cry! We've got each other now!" I cooed. She smiled through her tears.

" I tried to find you! But- but I've failed. Now we're both captive, and so are Ian and Wanda. And the Seekers have Jamie and Sharon. I've failed so hard!" She sobbed. The Seekers had Jamie and Sharon?

"It's okay, it's okay! We're gonna make it out of this!" I tried to comfort her. I couldn't imagine why Jamie had come with her, or Sharon, but that didn't matter. Melanie was here.

"Jared! Whose _she?_" Regan broke in.

"She's Melanie. She's everything. She's the most perfect person to ever walk the earth!" I crooned.

"Very nice to meet you- I guess." Regan hollered over to Melanie.

"Yeah you too…?" Melanie replied.

"Regan. The name's Regan Howe." Regan called out proudly.

"Howe? Jared- is this you're _sister_?" Melanie asked, the surprise evident in her voice. "You never said you had a sister!" Melanie continued.

"Um, well, yeah. She was taken in the very beginning. I guess I just never wanted to talk about it….I'm sorry," I confessed.

"It's okay. I get it. No one wants to talk about who they….lost. It's very nice to meet you Regan." Melanie affirmed.

**A/N: What a predicament eh? This chapter's a bit shorter than usual, because I'm going out with my grandma today. Not that you care or anything….. Anyway, review review review! I've reached 20 reviews, and 18 followers. That's like, **_**wow!**_** I never thought I'd ever get so many followers or viewers. I'm still amazed every day. It's the first thing I check when I get on the computer, and I just want to say THANK YOU! If I reached 20 followers I would like die. I never imagined that my story would have any views at all- let alone favorites! I love all of you guys that have reviewed, followed, or favorite. It means the world to me!**

**XOXO-EW**


	9. Held

**A/N: Thanks for helping me reach 23 reviews and 18 followers! So close to twenty! Hope you guys enjoy, because I wrote this instead of going to the movies…..**

The next day passed in a blur. I had come to terms with the fact that I and everyone that I truly loved, was either already dead, or was going to die. And it was my fault.

I suppose it was better to go at the hands of another human, than a Soul. Even in the face of extinction, humans found ways to fight and kill one another. _Homo Sapiens_ translates into "wise man," which always made me laugh. No truly wise man would kill its own brother as he lay on the cusp of survival.

I spent most of my day looking at Jared, memorizing the lines of his face. The way his lips bent when he smiled, and the twinkle of his eyes. My eyes traced the line of his hair, and the short beard he was forming after weeks of not shaving. I memorized the way his nose twitched right before he laughed, and the way his voice sounded with every inflection. I memorized him and his pure perfection.

I also got to know Regan, and her story. She had been taken in the very beginning of the invasion, and had lived the past years trapped inside her captor's head. She had lived in Tuscan with her Soul's family. On Jared's last stop before returning home, she had seen him at a store. Through shear force of will, she had taken over her mind again, to return to him. Jared recognized her at once, and promptly took the Soul out of her body. On their way back to the cave, they had been caught by Seekers and taken to the headquarters, where they were held for two weeks. I filled them in one why they hadn't had an insertion, and our half of the story.

There was no way of knowing how long it was before Joe and three other men came into our little alcove. They sat me upright, and dragged my chair over to where the other prisoners were. They put me next to Kyle, two seats away from Jared. It wasn't the best place, but it was better than before.

"I'm going to ask you some questions. I have a gun. I hope you understand what I'm saying for your sake, not mine," the leader, Joe, revealed, while holding up a loaded rifle. He gave us all a creepy grin, and looked each of us up and down. His eyes hovered on me, and he cocked his head to the side. Even from two seats away, I could hear Jared growling, as if he were about to leap out of his chair and tear the man to shreds.

"You. What's yurrr name missy?" Joe growled in his heavy Southern accent.

"Lucy Irons." I hissed, leaning forward as far as possible in my chair, which wasn't too far. I recognized the possibility that he could have over heard Jared and I talking, and heard my real name, but I didn't think he was smart enough to listen in.

"Feisty! That just won't do here," he clucked, shaking his head. He stepped towards me with a sly grin. He hooked his finger under my chin, raising my eyes up to meet his. "Just won't do here," he repeated, while still shaking his head. His breath was hot on my face, and it reeked of beer. I lashed out, managing to kick him in the leg. It was a weak kick, but it was the best I could do. His knee buckled, but he regained his composure quickly.

"Don't touch me!" I growled. He licked his lips before turning away, and joined his snickering friends.

"All of you! What are your names?" He roared, his hands behind his back. I had angered him, and I couldn't help but feel pleased.

We went down the line, reciting fake names as we did so. Everyone gave unremarkable, ordinary names, except Regan. On her turn she smiled and said with flawless confidence, "Taylor Swift." I saw Jared give an almost imperceptible shake of his head. It probably wasn't the best idea to pick the name of a famous person, but I highly doubted that any of these men knew who Taylor Swift was.

"Mmmm. Now, we're going to play a little game, an icebreaker if you will. I'm going to ask each of you a question, and if I don't like you're answer then I'll kill….." He spun around once, with his gun facing outward. When he stopped his barrel was pointing at Wanda. "Her! Sound good? Good!" He exclaimed. His voice got louder with every word, and by the end he was flat out yelling.

"Now, is there any one else in your little pack? Did I miss anyone?" Joe asked Andy, who was at the front of our line.

"No. This is every one." Andy lied.

"How do you travel? I mean, what sort of vehicle do you use, and where is it?" He bellowed at the next person in line, Aaron. The way he switched back and forth from loud and angry, from quiet to creepy, was making him seem extremely bipolar. Maybe he was.

"We used to have a big van, and a truck. They were in the truck, when we were caught," Aaron recalled, while pointing down to Wanda, Ian, and me.

"Did I ask you when you were caught?" Joe screeched. He was irrational, and insane. Aaron had given him more information, helping him, but he was too dumb to open his eyes and see that.

"No ma'am." Aaron mumbled.

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?" Joe bellowed. Regan cringed, and Wanda closed her eyes in fright.

"I'm coming back in one hour. You better have figured out how things work around here by then. Or I will kill every single one of you, not just her." Joe whispered, back to his little game of switching volume.

"Get the fuck out of here!" He commanded his men. They left before him, their faces solemn. Joe followed them, and turned, just before he disappeared around the box made door. He raised his rifle, took aim, and shot. My heart stopped beating, and the cavern was completely silent. My world spun in circles, and it wasn't until I heard a blood-curdling scream, that I was brought back to the real world. Wanda was screaming. He shot Wanda.

**A/N: Really short chapter, and a bit dark too. It's not my best chapter, and I hope you didn't hate it too much. This is my first fanfiction, after all. That's my best excuse for this chapter…. I'm going to try my best to finish this before Friday, when I leave. I hoped you…..liked…..this dark chapter. Reviews are the most magic, wonderful, beautiful, amazing, perfect thing on earth. Reviews are Jared. Give me Jared. Or Max Irons, which ever you prefer ;)**

**XOXO-EW**


	10. Fight

**A/N: As camp looms, I find myself writing, not packing. Lots of POV switching, because there's a lot going on and I wanted you to be able to view it from several perspectives. Enjoy**

Jamie's POV

I held in a scream as I saw Wanda gasping for air. She doubled over in pain, unable to do anything to stop the flow of blood coming from her lower abdomen. Her hands were still tied and so were everybody else's.

Sharon looked strangely calm as she pulled her knife out of her waistband, and then her handgun out of her boot. She motioned for me to follow her as she silently slipped from our hiding space between two large boxes and out into the open. She crept up behind Melanie first, putting her hand over Melanie's mouth to keep her from screaming. Melanie struggled at first, but when she realized that someone was cutting the ropes that held her hands, she relaxed. When Melanie's hands were free Sharon handed her another knife she had stashed in her pack to Melanie, so that Melanie could cut the ropes that held her to the chair, while Sharon moved on.

I followed Sharon's lead, cutting everyone free. As each person was freed, the process speeded up, and it only took a couple of minutes for everyone to be free.

I didn't recognize one girl, but she looked a lot like Jared. She looked very scared, and I felt bad for her. She looked too... innocent...to be a part of this world.

Wanda's POV

Nothing was clear to me. People were standing, but how? Why did my side hurt so much? How are they standing, aren't we tied up? My head was spinning, and my vision kept being blocked my pretty designs. Dots danced across my eyelids, and swirls spun and leaped. Black splotches grew and shrunk, a never-ending dance. I pressed my hands against my abdomen, but they came back crimson red, and sticky. Warmth was spreading down my legs, but I was so cold. So very cold.

"Wanda! Wanda stay with me! Don't you dare leave me! Wanda can you tell me your favorite color? Wanda how ya doing?" A flood of questions came from every direction, but I heard only one voice. Ian! As soon as I recognized him, things became clearer.

"Purple! My favorite color is purple!" I yelled, but cringed when a wave of pain suffocated me. My head swam, and the colors returned. This time they weren't so pretty. "Purple" I muttered one more time as I tried to speak through the pain.

"She's hysterical! We need to get her out of here!" Someone whispered. Why was everyone whispering? Yelling is much more fun….

I closed my eyes, but someone kept snapping in my ears and calling my name. I just wanted to sleep. Was that so much to ask for? I felt them wrapping something around my abdomen, and the flow of warmth onto my leg slowed. Someone snapped in my ear, again.

"Get your fucking hand away from me!" I growled. The snapping stopped. "Better." I sobbed. I hadn't realized I was crying. I was going to continue my insulting, but a wave of pain worse then the last one stopped me. I closed my eyes as tight as I could, and felt my entire body stiffen. I moaned in pain.

Suddenly, I was enveloped in warmth. Someone was cradling me. I didn't like opening my eyes, because of the colors, but I opened my eyes to see the most gorgeous blonde guy looking down at me. His face was wrinkled with worry. How cute.

"Hey cutey," I mumbled to him. He looked even more worried and didn't respond. Whatever. He's not my type anyway.

Melanie's POV

I embraced Jamie, ruffling his hair. "I thought I lost you!" I murmured to him. "Good thing you told us to stay behind" Jamie mumbled. I didn't want to, but I released him, realizing how little time we had.

"Sharon, how did you get here?" I whisper yelled at Sharon. She looked overwhelmed, but I needed an answer, and fast. The men could come back at any moment and Wanda's life was hanging by a thread.

"Jeep." She answered.

"Sharon! Come on, work with me! Where is it? We need to get Wanda out of here!" I said, in a more exasperated, and louder, voice.

"I-I'm sorry. Jamie and I escaped the Seekers and followed those men, when we saw them taking you into that van. The Jeep is parked behind the warehouse. We got in through the vents. That won't work this time- with Wanda. The only way out is that way." Sharon said in a rush, her hands pointing towards where Joe and his men had left only minutes before.

All I wanted to do was hug Jared, and have him tell me everything was okay. We still hadn't even touched, with everything going on. He was standing with Kyle, looking through Sharon and Jamie's packs for weapons, which were plentiful.

"Guys! We need to get out of here! That way!" I yelled, as loud as I dared. Everyone turned to me, Jared in middle of loading a gun.

"Kyle, Aaron, Andy, follow me. Sharon and Melanie, follow us. Jamie, Regan, Ian and Wanda, you come behind us, and get out by all means possible. Shoot to stop, not to kill. Wanda, Ian, Sharon, Jamie, and Regan get the car. The rest of you follow me." Jared instructed.

"Everyone needs a gun. Even Jamie and Regan." He added as I side note, before running to me and pulling me into a hug. I breathed in his amazing smell, and felt his muscles through his shirt. I could feel tears rolling down my cheek. I wrapped my arms around his waist, and held him as tight as I could.

"I love you." I whispered into his shirt.

"I love you." He whispered into my hair.

"Don't cry, it's gonna be over soon." He cooed.

"Don't be stupid. Don't leave me again." I sobbed.

"I love you." He repeated.

"I love you." I breathed in. He released me, but I didn't want him to. The world suddenly felt extremely cold.

"Duty calls." He whispered. I had grown to hate those words more than any other.

Jared's POV

I peaked around the corner of the entrance boxes with my gun ready, and my knife in my waistband. I couldn't see any men, but I got a good view of the warehouse. It was mostly towering metal shelves holding huge boxes, like the ones that made up our little cell. It gave us good cover, but it also blocked a lot of my vision. I dared to step out further, so that I could see a little office in the distance. I heard laughing coming from there, and guessed that's where all the men were.

I jerked my head left, as far away from the office as possible. We trailed along the far wall, our guns ready. I could see Melanie and Sharon trailing about twenty feet behind us, and they had their guns ready too. We were just about to reach the point where the shelves ended and it was clear of cover, about a hundred yards from the exit, when everything went wrong.

"Hold it!" A deep voice instructed. It wasn't Joe, but it was one of his huge henchmen. I could see him standing at the end of the row, his gun pointed at us. It was a standoff that I wasn't about to loose.

"Like hell!" I yelled as I shot him in the shin. His gun clattered to the ground as he fell over, grabbing his shin. As I ran past him and into the open, I took his gun with me.

"Oh shit!" I yelled, as I saw ten huge men, and one awful woman, pouring out of the office. Our position had been given away by the shot, and now we had no cover. We were in a loading dock of sorts, with huge spaces in the wall that trucks could back up into. All of them were covered, except one, our only exit. We had about 3000 square feet between us, and that door.

"We can do this the easy way, or the hard way. You pick." Joe warned, his gun pointed at my head.

"Fuck you." I yelled as I fired my gun at his shoulder. I was too far away, and missed, but that shot started an all out free for all.

Melanie's POV

I stood frozen, observing the fight unfolding before me. Shots were fired all around me, and men fell, but my legs were frozen. I analyzed every possibility, because with the way things were unfolding, we were going to loose.

I motioned for Sharon to follow me as I climbed onto a up a latter, and up thirty feet to the top platform of the shelve against the wall. There were no boxes up here, and I had a perfect view of the fighting beneath me. I scanned for Jared, and found him fist fighting Joe, and winning. It looked as if Joe had been seriously injured, because his shirt was stained red.

"So what's the plan?" Sharon whispered, sounding unsure of her self.

I didn't answer, but instead began to run the length of shelf. This was the only shelve that continued all the way to the far wall of the warehouse, past where the other ones stopped. The shelf was sturdy, and the top gave us perfect shadow cover.

At the end, where the walls made a corner, there was a small window, only about three feet by five feet. It was tinted a muddy brown, but I pushed it open and looked down. Beneath me, there was an industrial truck, its cargo side pushed up against the wall.

"Um, Mel?" Sharon nagged.

"What?" I snapped. I hadn't planned this, and I was regretting it.

"Mel! Mel look!" Sharon screamed. I turned to see two large men climbing up the ladders. None of them had guns, but two of them had knives.

"What are we going to do?" Sharon was trembling with fear.

I swung my leg up and out the window. I gripped the widow sill and pulled my other leg up and over, so that I was sitting on the edge.

"Jump!" I yelled as I pushed my hands off the sill and fell down onto the cargo truck beneath me. I felt a rush of air, a moment of bliss, before I slammed into the metal beneath me. It was only a fifteen-foot drop, I only rolled a couple of feet before I stopped myself and stood up. I looked up to see Sharon's mortified face looking down at me.

"There's no other way! Sharon, you have to do this!" I yelled up to her. She shakily swung her legs over the sill, the same way I had. She looked over her shoulder, and whatever was over there must have been the worse option, because she closed her eyes and jumped.

Ian's POV

I ran along the wall and towards the exit. Regan and Jamie trailed behind me, and with every step I took, Wanda let out a tiny moan. I led us along the opposite wall from the one Jared had led his men down. I had left moments after I heard a gunshot, figuring that any action would be centered on that side of the warehouse, and that we had a better chance of escaping this way.

"I'm so sorry," I murmured to Wanda when she let out a loud moan. I should have done more, to protect her. I should have never let her go on the mission in the first place. She's too important.

Jared's POV

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Melanie on top of the shelves. No, that couldn't be. I kept fighting. I was backed up against a wall, fighting off as many men as possible. Aaron was wounded, and lay behind me. Other than him, all of our men were standing. Joe's men were large, but they didn't have the best shot, or hand to hand combat skills. Somehow, we were managing to fight them off.

Only Joe and three of his men remained when I began to try to move Aaron to the exit. His leg was badly cut and he leaned on me for support as he hobbled over to the exit.

Out of the corner of my eye, near where the office was, I saw Ian and his little team leaving through a little door I hadn't seen before. We made eye contact, telling him to leave, while he could.

"Come on!" I yelled to my men, who were fighting over near the office. I didn't know how we were going to escape, once we got out of the warehouse, but I needed to focus on getting out of the warehouse, before I could focus on further escape.

I walked backwards, firing shots at Joe as I did so. The man was impossible to beat, and he was getting closer. The exit was the only open loading dock, and I hadn't realized how far of a jump it was to the bottom. There was no way Aaron could jump, with his leg. Joe was getting closer, and my other men were fighting the last of Joe's men. I had no escape, with Aaron.

My gun ran out of bullets, and I tossed it to the side. It skidded a couple of feet, on the smooth concrete, before stopping. I had long since lost my knife.

"No one gets away from me!" Joe snarled, as he lunged for my throat. I released Aaron, who sagged against the wall, his face ashen. I stepped to the side, and Joe fell on his face. "I do." I mimicked his Southern accent.

He struggled to get up, and I kicked him in the back, pushing him back down. Joe was injured, and was having trouble standing under my leg. I flipped him over and shoved my knee into his throat. He growled, and I jabbed it in further.

He reached for my neck, and I threw a punch at his face that drew blood from his already deformed nose. I pinned his arms with my knees and threw more punches, until I was sure he was entirely knocked out.

A shadow fell over me, and there was a loud beeping sound. I turned to see a huge truck backing up, against the exit. The back was open, and Sharon was inside.

"Come on! Get in!" She yelled while motioning for us to get in. I helped Aaron to stand and led him inside to Sharon's care, before running back to my other men, who were fighting the last of Joe's men.

Kyle was fist fighting one man, while Andy had tackled the other. I went to Kyle first, who looked like he was struggling the most. I came up behind the man, and shoved my knee behind his, so that it buckled. Kyle tackled him, and punched him as I held his hands down. By the time we were done, Kyle had managed to shoot the other man in the shoulder.

Ian's POV

As I arrived out in the open, and very close to the office, I realized that most of the fighting was still happening. Jared was fighting the largest man, near the open loading dock, while Kyle and Andy fought of two men across the room from me. I ran around the office, which was really just a square room placed in near the corner of the warehouse. Its walls weren't even as tall as the warehouse, and they were lined with windows.

I was now standing in the far corner of the warehouse, where I noticed a little door in the wall. It was a normal exit, unlike the huge loading dock that we had believed we would escape through. I looked over at Jared, and we made eye contact for a moment. He was telling me to go. And I did.

Jared's POV

"What about Ian and them?" Sharon asked as we stepped into the back of the truck.

"They already left, to get Wanda back to the cave." I responded. Sharon slid down the big sliding door down the back of the truck.

"How did you get this?" Andy asked as he motioned around the truck we were standing in the back of. It hit a jolt, and everyone braced themselves against the wall.

"We, um, jumped out a window and onto it." Sharon replied with a shaky laugh. I shook my head. Melanie is insane. That's part of the reason why I love her.

**A/N: Long chapter! I didn't proof, because I have to go babysit, but I'll proof it when I get home. Like I said, lots of POV changes! I hope the way I described everything in the warehouse made sense, and you weren't all like, "What?!" That's the best I could do for a sort of 'final battle' scene, and I hope you liked it. Review!**

**XOXO- EW**


	11. Jared

**A/N: I hope everyone is still reading…because here comes the fun mushy chapter that I love so much. Started out with some O'Wanda, but then moved on to my favorite, Jelanie, to hopefully please everyone. Then there is some more O'Wanda at the end, and then a surprise. And now I'll stop ranting, so you can just go read it and see for yourself! Let the fluff begin…**

Wanda's POV

My head throbbed, and my side ached. I opened my eyes, and for a moment couldn't see anything, except a bright white light.

"Did I die?" I groaned.

"Wanda! She's up everyone- she's up!" A voice yelled, a bit too loud for my liking. I pressed my head against my temple, and shut my eyes again. Someone squeezed my hand.

"I'm glad you're awake," someone whispered into my ear. Ian! My eyes shot open, and I was instantly fully awake, just to see his face.

"Ian! What happened? How did we get home? I love you!" I let out in a flood of words. I don't know if a single word was comprehensible, but Ian seemed to understand what I was asking. I looked around and saw that I was in the infirmary, and Ian was sitting next to me, holding my hand. I could imagine him waiting my bed, just like that, for as long as it took for me to wake up. I loved him.

"After you were….shot….Jamie and Sharon showed up, and untied us. We escaped. And you're going to be perfectly fine, after a couple of weeks of bed rest, that is," Ian explained. He squeezed my hand and smiled at me.

"Jeb, is he mad at us?" I nervously asked.

"I bet he was when he realized we left, but how could he be mad, when we made it home with everyone? Especially with you being hurt, he wasn't about to take a moment to scold us." Ian pointed out.

"Oh." I said. I didn't know what else to say. Ian smiled at me and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"You need to rest. Everyone else from the raid is, and you need to even more than them" Ian urged.

"Only if you sleep too. You look exhausted." I insisted.

"I couldn't sleep, not with you all alone here. I couldn't bear to have you wake up alone, and confused." He confessed with a bashful smile.

"Go! Sleep!" I instructed, giving him a light shove. "I'm perfectly all right!" I insisted again.

He leaned in for a kiss on the cheek, longer than the last, and whispered, "I love you. I always have, and I always will."

I blushed and whispered back, "I loved you, the moment I laid eyes on you. I've only ever been made for you."

As he walked away, I held onto his hand as long as I could, until our hands slipped apart.

Melanie's POV

"You were really hard to find." I murmured into Jared's shirt. We were lying in bed, holding each other.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry you ever had to come find me." Jared apologized.

"I'm just glad we found you. You are never going on a raid without me- ever!" I promised.

"I know. I know." Jared laughed.

I looked up at his perfect face and he grinned. I frowned. "I'm being serious! I thought- I thought I lost you! You don't know how scary that was!" I choked out.

"I do. I really do. The days after you didn't come home from going to find Sharon…. those were the worst days of my life," he confessed. I looked up into his eyes, and for all the joy they held, they also held pain.

He gently wiped a tear of my face with his thumb. I looked down, before looking back up into his eyes. "What would I do without you?" I laughed, but a lump remained in my throat.

"Don't….don't even ask. Because I will _never_ allow that to happen. I love you. I love you more than I have ever loved anything in my life. You are the reason I am alive today. Not only because you rescued me, but because you _are_ my _life._ You're the reason I laugh. The reason I smile. The reason I wake up every morning to live another day. You're my everything." He whispered, the passion clear in his voice. I began to tear up even more, and buried my head in his soft cotton tee. He put his chin on top of my head, and I was overcome with warmth. And love. But a different kind of love. This love was gentle and kind, not hungry and fiery. This love could steadily burn for a thousand years.

"I love you." I murmured into my shirt. I don't know how he understood me, because I said it into his shirt, and the lump in my throat must have made it even quieter, but he did. "I love you too." He whispered. I didn't deserve him.

I finally pulled my head out of the warmth of his embrace, and looked back up at him. "Do you remember…that morning, after the movie night when you had carried me back to bed?" I asked.

"Of course. How could I forget?" He smiled.

"And I was laughing so hard, when you said you had carried me home, so that I didn't have to wake up? Well, I was laughing, so that I wouldn't cry. Cry because I couldn't believe that I had found someone so perfect, and thoughtful as you. And I couldn't believe someone would ever love me as much as you did-do. I didn't think I deserved you. And I still don't think I do." I whispered. He tried to stop me, when I said I didn't deserve him. "No, no, let me finish," I put my hand up to stop his on coming protests. "But somehow, through all my faults, you love me. And that is why I love you. But even more than that, it's just _who you are._ You're loving, you're kind, you're smart, and you're adorable." I said with a laugh. "And even if someday you stopped loving me, I could never stop loving you. Because we were made for each other. Somehow, through a twist of fate, we found each other. And my life has been so much better because of it. No obstacle will ever keep me from you. If I had to spend the rest of my life searching for you, I would. Because I love you." My voice rose with emotion, but then dropped to a whisper with my last words.

He gently cupped my head in his hands and looked into my eyes. "Melanie. Mel. I would never stop loving you. I will love you until the day I die. I don't know if there is a God. But I do know that we were made for each other. Every moment in time has led up to this moment, to _us._" He whispered.

We maneuvered our bodies, so that I was hovering over him. I leaned down for a kiss, more passionate than the others. This kiss was hungrier, and made of fire. This time, when his hand traveled down to my thigh, is left a trail of red-hot fire. We were fire. This love was fire.

* * *

**Four Weeks Later**

Wanda's POV (Because for some unfathomable reason people like O'Wanda fluff)

Ian lightly pressed on the scar on my lower abdomen, where I had been shot.

"How bout that? Does that hurt?" He asked.

"No!" I laughed. "I really am all better now! You have to believe me!" I giggled.

"Ok, how bout this?" Ian laughed as he tickled my stomach. He knew how ticklish I was, and exactly what spots made me laugh the most.

"Stop! Please!" I gasped in between laughs. I rolled over onto my side, and curled into a ball, trying to protect my most ticklish places.

"I'm done! I promise!" Ian smiled, raising his hands in surrender. I raised my eyebrows at him, from my little ball. "I swear!" He promised. I slowly uncurled from my little ball, at which point Ian took his hands from behind his back, to show his crossed fingers. This time I was prepared. I shot up, and pinned him down on the bed.

He started laughing, a light and free laugh. I collapsed onto him, resting my head on his chest. We both fell silent, as he stroked little circles on my back and absentmindedly hummed a random tune.

I turned my chin, so that it was resting on his chest, and I was looking at his face.

"Ian."

"Wanderer."

"How do you love me? When you know what I am. When you know what my species has done to our planet." I timidly asked. I remained on top of him, but rested on my elbows so that I could see him better.

He paused a moment, before answering, "You are not you're species. If I represented all humans, then I would be a passionate, loving, beautiful, dick. But, I'm not all humans. I'm just me. You don't hate me, just for being a human. Plus, you're more human than Soul."

"Do you really mean that?" I whispered.

"I do. You're so beautiful, on the inside and out, most of the time, I don't even remember you're a Soul." Ian admitted. My heart soared.

"But, sometimes, even I hate myself. For what my species has done." I confessed. I hung my head in shame, remembering all the Soul's had taken from humans.

Ian brought my chin back up with his finger, forcing me to look him in the eye. "Wanda, if you can't see anything beautiful about yourself geta better _mirror_. _Look_ a little closer. _Stare_ a little longer. Because there's something inside you that makes you more beautiful than any other creature. Never hate yourself. You're perfect. When people are around you, they're happy. You bring joy. You are joy." Ian said. His words were so beautiful, so perfect. I loved him so much.

"I don't deserve you." I whispered, as I leaned in for a kiss, and wrapped my arms around his neck.

"You do." He spoke with my lips pressed against his. I silenced him by making the kiss more passionate. He wrapped his muscular arms around my waist, and pulled me even closer to him.

After a couple of moments, Ian pulled away. "We should really go to breakfast." He whispered.

"Yeah, no." I giggled.

"Well if you insist…" Ian muttered as he pulled me back in, even more passionately this time.

"Oh shit! I'm sorry!" I rolled off of Ian to see Kyle standing in the doorway, where the door was very clearly closed before.

"What the hell man! You ever heard of knocking?'" Ian snapped.

"Ever heard of locking your door?" Kyle snarled back.

"Get out! What are you still doing here?" Ian yelled, pointing to the door. Kyle held his hands up in surrender as he backed out the door, closing it behind him.

"I'm sorry. He's a dick." Ian apologized. It didn't really matter. Kyle had ruined the mood, and now we really did have to go to breakfast. He had brought us back to reality.

"It's not your fault. C'mon, lets go to breakfast." I yawned as I rolled out of bed.

Ian sighed, and muttered under his breath, "Fuckin' brothers ruin everything." I laughed, and he looked up at me, startled that I had heard him. He forgot how good Pet's hearing was.

"Maybe another time." I whispered as I leaned in for one more kiss on the nose.

Melanie's POV

"Where are we going? You know I hate surprises!" I laughed as Jared led me down the hallway. I felt along the walls, trying to figure out where we were going, with the blindfold on my head.

"I'm not telling! And _I_ know you secretly love surprises!" Jared pointed out. I snapped my fingers, in fake annoyance that he had discovered my 'secret.'

Like stepping out from the dark and into the light, I felt the cool night air of the desert on my face. "We're outside!" I exclaimed.

He scooped me up, and lightly kissed me on the lips, before saying, "No more talking." I frowned, but I wasn't actually annoyed. Jared had been acting strange all day, and I figured out why after dinner, when he told me he had a surprise for me.

After a couple more minutes of walking, Jared set me down, and took of my blindfold.

"Jared!" I gasped. We were on top of the mountain, and you could see the entire desert laid out in front of us. Jared had lit at least a hundred candles, all around us. In the center, was a picnic blanket, and a little picnic basket.

"How?" I breathed, still in awe of the beauty.

"There's a little path to the top of the mountain. Have I never showed that to you?" Jared shrugged. I stood on my toes, wrapped my arms around his neck, and whispered into his ear, "You are perfect."

He laughed and took my hand, leading my to the picnic blanket. We sat down and I leaned back on my hands, to admire the scene beneath me. The sky was painted pink and orange with the setting sky, and was dotted with fluffy pink clouds.

"Look's like the entrance to Heaven." I laughed, pointing to where the clouds opened up in a hundred different shades.

Jared laughed, like he did so often. "It does. I brought dessert." He said as he pulled out two mini chocolate cakes from the basket.

"Mmmm!" I hummed as he whipped out two forks from the basket. He smiled as he handed one of them to me.

"So, what is the purpose of all this?" I asked through a bite of delicious chocolate cake.

"Just another way to say- I love you." Jared shakily laughed.

We admired the view as we ate, until we were done, and Jared casted our plates to the side.

He turned away from the view, and towards me. "Do you remember the night we came home?" He asked, looking into my eyes.

"Of course. I could never forget that." I replied.

"And we talked about being made for each other? All that, it got me to thinking that we are going to spend the rest of our life's together- no matter what." His voice was more serious, and emotional than before.

"Of course." I agreed, when he paused.

"But, we aren't just going to _spend_ our lives together, we're going to _live_ our life's together. We'll laugh together, we'll cry together, and we'll do everything in between together. Our lives will be forever intertwined. Well, I guess what I'm getting at," he took my hands into his much larger ones, "I love you. And I want to be able to call you my wife. Melanie will you marry me?" Jared, beautiful, amazing Jared, _my _Jared asked me.

"Of course! I love you!" I cried out as I threw my arms around his neck and hugged my fiancé for the first time.

"I don't have ring- I didn't want to wait until after the next raid to ask you, I hope you don't mind." Jared apologized.

"I don't care! I don't need a ring, you're all I need." I promised.

"I was so nervous!" Jared shakily laughed.

"Why? You knew I would say yes!" I laughed, as a joyful lump formed in my throat. I leaned over to him, onto him, to kiss him.

The sky slowly darkened as we spent our night outside, just talking. We talked about the wedding, about our love for one another, and our future. At around midnight, Jared pulled champagne out of the basket, and we each had a glass.

It was around two in the morning and I was curled up against Jared's chest, when something caught my eye.

"Look!" I sat up and pointed to the sky. Jared sat up too, and smiled knowingly.

"It's a shooting star." I sighed. The sky was pitch black, and you could see them clearly against the other stars. They shot across the sky, leaving a trail of light as they did so.

"You knew this was happening tonight. That's why you picked tonight." I whispered, amazed at how well he planned everything.

"Make a wish." Jared whispered.

"I already have everything I want- I have you." I whispered back. And it was true.

**A/N: OH LAWD FLUFF! A bit unrealistic, but that's what makes it so magical ;) So, I wanted to sort of wrap up the whole adventure part, but I'm having lots of fun, so I'm going to keep writing when I get back from camp. I didn't want to leave you in the middle of an adventure so I finished the last one, and this one will start when I get home. I could have made it a new story, but I want to keep the whole adventure set up, so I'm just going to keep rolling with this. Thanks for reading and reviewing! Especially to Lux1999, who makes up for 21.1428571% of my reviews!**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! When I come back from camp I wanna see some reviews! :) ;)**

**Love each and every one of you- see ya (read ya?) in a month babies!**

**XOXO-EW**


	12. Goodbye

**Dearest Followers (Or whoever made it this far into my story….),**

** So I came home from a month at camp yesterday, and read through my story, and I'm not really feeling it anymore. So, I'm super sorry to say to anyone that is still reading, or still cares, that I'm not going to write anymore for this story. You should go check out my fanfic for The Hunger Games, _Falling_, that I just started, or my one-shot for The Fault in Our Stars.**

** Even though it's over, at least it's not a cliffhanger! I don't think there are many people who still read my story. It's sort of really unrealistic, but I had fun writing it, and it will always have a little spot in my heart as my first fanfiction! If you've read this far, I would love for you to drop a review about what you thought about the whole fanfiction! It will still make me so happy to know someone still cares about this! Love all of you for reading this far!**

** Drop an overall review! Love each and every one of you!**

**XOXO**

∞ **EW**

**P.S (Like Two weeks later) You guys, I am so happy I was like tearing up this morning because even though my story is done, I keep getting all these nice reviews and it amazes me because I never thought my story was any good and the reviews are SO NICE. It means the world to me. Your the reason I love to write so much. You know how when you get to know someone their personality is written across their face? Well, even though I don't know any of you personally, when I think of you guys I imagine angels because your just that beautiful. Thank you to the moon and back. I'm seriously freakin teary eyed.**


End file.
